The Return of the Heroes
by Could be more Original
Summary: No Romance, i disaprove of it. final fantasy 7 chars... 1 month after the ending in DoC. The story is now complete. Questions answered and gaps filled, somewhat...PLEASE REVIEW!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Bernice walked along the edge of a lake. In the cold evenings of the States, she wore a black long-sleeved shirt and a pair of tight fitting long blue jeans. She also wore a low-cut sleeveless coat that was pale pink in colour. Her long, black hair was gathered up into a single braid tied high.

She pocketed her hands as she walked. Deep within her thoughts, her mind wandered to places thousands of miles away or to places that she knew that didn't even exist. After what seems like mere seconds, the nearby streetlamps started to light. It was growing late, she thought it best if she made her way home.

In a private counsel room on the top floor of the WRO headquarters, there stood eight figures.

Reeve Tuesti, commissioner of the World Restoration Organization, stood up in objection. "But we don't even know why they want this girl."

Cloud Strife put his finger tips together as if in thought and said, "Yes, that is true, but we as the heroes of the Jenova war are inclined to stop their actions. It is obvious that they want her for a reason we have yet to uncover by the reports Yuffie stole from their headquarters."

Reeve thought this over. "Perhaps, but how do you plan to go to this girl's home world? You will almost certainly be identified the moment you set foot there."

Vincent Valentine was the next to speak. "I have the means to open a portal to connect out two worlds for a short time. But to be on the safe side, we should make it so that we enter the world during the night."

"I'm more worried about why they want her. After Vincent took out Weiss, Nero, Azul and Rosso, I thought it would be the end of the Deep Ground Soldiers. We should go into her world and get take her here so we can protect her until further notice," said a very inpatient Yuffie Kisaragi.

"I agree with Yuffie on this one. I think I _should _bring her back ASAP," Tifa Lockheart said, her face a stoned mask.

All eyes instantly turned on Tifa. "What makes you so sure you would be the one to go and get her?" asked Cloud, half amused half astonished by Tifa's words.

"Who else?"

"Me, maybe?"

Tifa let out a little chuckle. "Really? I'd like to be the one that sees someone walking down the road with a five foot long sword strapped to his back." Tifa said, leaning against her chair.

Cloud shrugged in defeat. "Vincent? Guns are not very rare in her world and they are very easy to conceal."

"Great, no offence, Vincent, but she'd probably see a man with red eyes, a three barreled gun and a tattered red cloak and run before you could even approach her. What would you think a girl that's never seen guns outside of movies and dreams do when she sees one?"

Vincent had no expression on his face. He looked at Cloud and nodded in agreement to Tifa's words.

And before Cloud could say anything else, Tifa cut him short by saying, "Yuffie's weapon is too big to conceal, Barret has a gun for an arm, Red's too big to pass as a dog in her world and a talking cat isn't really the best approach. It has to be me, I use no weapons and my outfit isn't too odd there."

"Oh, I don't like this," said a worried Yuffie as she paced up and down the room. "You can't go in alone."

"I can take care of myself, Yuffie. Besides, I'm the most suited to go. If the DGS really found a way to travel between worlds, they _are _going to go after her, how are you guys going to help her then if you didn't take any weapons with you? I don't need weapons to fight, I'm sure you all could fight without yours but these things aren't one of those things that you can get used to in a day."

"Well, she des have quite a few points there," admitted Barret.

Yuffie suddenly giggled. "We had better end this meeting soon."

Reeve looked confused and exchanged glances with the others. Raising an eyebrow, he asked, "Why is that, Yuffie?"

Turning a circle in glee, she said, "Because, if you guys hadn't noticed, one of our 'Heroes of the Jenova War' hasn't said a thing yet. He's probably mourning over his 'losses'. We better end it quick so he can go back to his moping."

Everyone in the room laughed, except for Vincent who merely let out a chuckle.

Cid Highwind came out of his thoughts. "Ha? What? What's everyone laughing about?"

Barret answered between his laughs. "Get over it. It was just a ship and you didn't even build it. You'll fix yourself up with another one in no time."

Yuffie said, "Yea, cheer up, besides, Vincent should be more worried, he was suppose to drop with he's WRO team during the explosion."

"Ok, Yuffie, stop teasing Cid. Come on we still haven't decided what we have to do yet." Cloud said

"Yes, we have. I'm going in through Vincent's portal during her world's night time, fight any DGS that want to harm me or her and bring her back to headquarters," said Tifa firmly.

Cloud sighed. "There's no changing her mind, is there?" he asked Reeve.

"I'm afraid not, Cloud." Reeve answered his tone a mixture of sadness and amusement.

"Fine, we'll go with Tifa's plan. When you get the girl back, we'll hold her here until we can be sure that she's safe again."

She nodded. Just as they were about to leave the room, Vincent's phone rang.

He flipped it open and answered. "Yes, Shelke? Hmm? Alright, I'll put you on the speakers.

He did so and they heard what Shelke had to say.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

After hearing Vincent's end of the conversation, they resumed their places around the rectangular table, but Yuffie remained standing. Vincent returned to his corner by and leaned against it casually.

The speakers made a crackling sound when Vincent plugged in his hand phone. There was a moment of silence, and then they heard a girl's voice coming through the speakers.

"I did an SND and I might have found one of maybe hundreds of reasons DGS wants Bernice."

"That's the first good news I've heard today," said a cheerful Cat Sith. He flipped once on Nanaki's back, sending yellow stars flying in all directions.

"It says here that Bernice is special in a way. Her brain constantly stays in the alpha brain wave mode. It is very rare that she would change into beta or delta waves. She is also a strong Visual Learner, giving all her competitors a run for their money."

Shelke was interrupted when Barret half-shouted to the speakers. "Talk in English Shelke, not all of us here are geniuses."

"Um, sorry, Barret." Shelke took a moment to stifle a chuckle, and then continued. "What I meant was that she learns things very quickly if taught by a master without much stress and hard work. In addition, she learns even faster if she was shown an actual demonstration…but there are conditions."

"Like?" asked Cloud.

"For example, you could teach her how to run, but that doesn't mean she's going to be the fastest runner on the tracks. Apart from her unique learning ability, she is more in-tuned with her instincts than most, especially in areas which she shows interest in. There is a saying in that world: I love what I do, hence, I excel at it. She shows positive thinking in the martial arts."

Suddenly, Vincent and Tifa's eyes widened as they both said, "Cloud!"

'I know, go, and hurry."

Vincent grabbed his phone and he and Tifa burst through the door and started running to the hall, the only place that was big enough to open a portal to another world. WRO soldiers hurried out of the way of the two commanders as they rushed down the hall.

Everyone shot Cloud a questioning glance. "What was it that you knew?" asked Yuffie.

They had never seen Cloud so serious since the time they battled the bahamut a year and a half ago. Cloud said, "The worst, we now know the ultimate reason why they wanted the girl." His face grew solemn. "They are rebuilding the Tsviet."

These words left everyone in the room dumbfounded.

"I hate to be the one to bring this up too, but you all know what that means. If Bernice is going to be a Tsviet, she would need a teacher," Cloud said.

"Vincent didn't _kill_ Weiss, did he?" Yuffie said it so softly, it was almost considered a whisper.

Shaking his head, Cloud said, "No, Yuffie, I guess he didn't. It looks like we have some unfinished business to attend to."

Vincent and Tifa rounded the bend to face a large double door. The two doors slide aside and they ran inside.

Once inside, Tifa turned to Vincent. "Um, you _do_ know what you're doing, right?"

Vincent nodded. _ "I hope you're right, Chaos."_ Vincent thought to himself. "Ready, Tifa?"

Vincent took out two glowing materias, one of which was silver in colour and the other black. He handed the materia to an awestruck Tifa. "What are…?" Tifa started to ask.

Vincent waved away the question and said, "Time is of the essence. I'll explain some other time…Now, with the right combination of materia, an inter-dimensional rift should open. You've got ten minutes until they disintegrate. Once placed together, they become unstable and must be pulled apart within the time limit."

Next, Vincent took out a pocket-sized time-piece and handed it to Tifa. "Here, use this." He then took several tentative steps backwards.

Tifa nodded silently. She set the timer for ten minutes, took a deep breath and with an almighty heave, jammed the two materias together.

The materias joined as one. A brilliant light erupted from them, followed by a dark aura, which soon engulfed Tifa. Her head spun for a moment. She felt her feet leave the ground, and then…

_THUD! _ Tifa felt her body collide with what felt like solid ground. Thankfully, the grass beneath her had somewhat softened her landing. Placing her hand onto her forehead, she groaned. She was dizzy, and her muscles felt as if they were expanding and contracting at the same time. She stood up, and found herself swaying. _Strange…I feel so…heavy._ Tifa tried shaking the disorientation from her head. It got worse. _Okay…mental note…never do that again._

She sat back down. Then, she remembered the time-piece. She took it out and checked it. _Good, seven minutes to go._

Up ahead, she heard someone yelling, familiar growling noises, and then, the sound of people running, running…TOWARDS HER!

Tifa looked towards the direction of the noises and saw that the person who was running towards her was a girl. She was being chased by figures in glowing blue uniform…DEEPGROUND!

All sense of dizziness left her as she saw her worst fears realized. She felt the adrenaline rise. _It's Go time!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Darkness slowly engulfed a fiery sunset. In a secluded area of the neighborhood park, Bernice stood under a street lamp, and threw her gaze across the still waters of the lake. The moon was luminescent against the navy blue sky.

She sighed, indulging in the serene moment. This was her favorite part of her day. It felt good to take time off and forget about the worries which came with the commission of finding one's place in the society.

It had only been a fortnight ago when the 18-year-old bid her farewell to her foster parents, the only real family (well, sort of) she had ever known. After finishing her diploma in graphic design, her foster family had insisted it was time that she 'left the nest'.

"Good evening, Bernice." A voice broke through the peaceful silence, startling Bernice.

She spun round and saw a tall man standing a few feet away. He had white, spiky hair. He wore no shirt, and his lean, muscular body showed many scars. Although this man did, by no means, look gruesome, Bernice felt her heart beat accelerate. _How did this guy know who she was?_

"Good evening." Bernice replied, trying to keep her voice calm. _Something didn't seem right._ Her head screamed for her to make a run for it.

"Shall we take a walk?" The man said to her.

"Wha…?" She started inching backwards.

"We can do this the easy way…" He made a gesture, and two figures sporting glowing blue stripes on either side of their body jumped out from the bushes behind the man. "…or the hard way."

Bernice yelled in fright and amazement. And before she knew it, she found herself running at top speed. She could hear her pursuers closing in on her. _Help…must find help!_

Tifa was immediately on her feet. It took her three minutes to get here, that would mean she had four minutes to get Bernice through the portal.

Tifa ran towards the DGS while putting on her black gloves. She stopped somewhat ten feet away and waited for the DGS to get closer.

She spotted Bernice and tried shouting to her, but then all that came out was an indefinable echoing which made her ears throb. _Not good…I can't talk here…_

Peeking at her time piece, she saw that she had less than three minutes left. _ Not enough time for a proper fight._

As soon as Bernice got close enough, Tifa made a grab for her and positioned herself between the teenager and her pursuers.

The DGS made no attempt to slow their pace. Tifa seized the nearest DGS by his collar and flung him into his comrade. The collision sent both DGS flying several feet backwards.

As they were recovering, Tifa made a dash towards Bernice. She then gave her a reassuring smile as she placed her hand unto her shoulder. She held out the materia. Once more, blazing light and dark aura erupted from it, and surrounded the duo.

Just before the ground fell away from beneath their feet, Tifa look past the DGS that were struggling to their feet and saw a familiar-looking man slowly walking into view. Despite the distance, she saw his eyes grow wide with rage.

THUMP! The duo landed hard on the marble floor of the WRO headquarters. "Ow…" moaned the two in unison. Tifa felt the materia being taken from her hand.

Vincent sighed as the materia's light went out and the dim orb turned to dust in his claw. "Hmm…You certainly took your time, didn't you? You had me worried there for a sec…Everyone alright?" Vincent chided as she helped Tifa to her feet. Tifa blinked. All the dizziness which she had felt in that other world had left her.

She nodded, "I had a run-in with a couple of 'old friends'. Well, least I got the job done…"

The two friends quickly proceeded to helping the teenager to her feet. Bernice stood swaying for a moment before sinking back down unto her knees, with both hands clutching either side of her head.

"Whoa…" Tifa said as she kneeled and placed a reassuring hand on Bernice's back. Vincent fell in beside Tifa. "Is she alright?"

Tifa replied, "I think she feels dizzy. I felt the same when I first entered her world."

Vincent nodded in understanding. "I'll get Reeve." He straightened and left.

Tifa turned towards Bernice, and said, "It's alright. Help is coming. Try not to say anything; it'll only make you dizzier."

The teenager moaned. Her head swam, darkness and chill soon overwhelmed her, and she knew no more.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

It didn't take long before Reeve Tuesti and the others who were present in the meeting room to arrive where Tifa held an unconscious 18-year-old in her arms.

The commissioner was first to speak. "How…"

"She passed out." Tifa replied, sounding worried.

Reeve nodded "Hmm…I expected as much." He signaled for two WRO soldiers and instructed them to take Bernice to the ward. When they had left, he continued. "In theory, the different worlds which exist vibrate at different wavelengths. She'll be feeling disoriented until her body can adjust to our wavelength. I should think you experienced similar symptoms when you first arrived at her home world, Tifa?"

Tifa nodded. From the corner of her eyes, she could see Cloud shifting uncomfortably. As she got up, she crossed her arms and said, "Ya know, you could have warned me about that before I left…"

The commissioner shrugged. "Like I said, I only knew that 'in theory', not for a fact. Anyway, I heard from Vincent that you saw Deep Ground while you were there…"

Just then, it hit Tifa like a ton of bricks. "Reeve, they didn't seem the least bit disoriented when I saw them. And he was with them…Weiss. He looked a bit scared and mangled, but he's alive." At this, Vincent shifted involuntarily.

"Yes, well, it looks like DG beat us to inter-dimensional travel. The point is, now that she's here, we may as well teach her to defend herself. It's the best way to protect her, after all. I'll leave the arrangements to you lot. I'm counting on you." Then, before anyone could make any 'further contributions', the commissioner turned and left.

When the others had gone, Cloud approached Tifa. "So…you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Told you I could handle it!"

Several days later, in the WRO headquarters' ward, the teenager awoke with a start. Shaking the fuzziness away, she saw that she was lying on a hospital bed. She sat up and glanced around. At the far end of the ward, a young woman with long, black hair sat snoozing in a chair. _Hey, I think I know her. _Then, she remembered the night in the park, the chase and…_ Oh boy, I don't think I'm in the States anymore…_ She took a moment to weigh her options. _Well, she did save my life back there. _She drew her thoughts to a conclusion. She gathered up her courage and got out of bed.

Bernice walked calmly (well, as calmly as she could, anyways) towards the dozing woman and gently tapped her on the shoulder. She stirred.

"Well, hello there. Look who's finally up." The young woman greeted her with a smile. She held out her hand and said, "I'm Tifa Lockheart. Welcome to Gaia."

"Gaia?" Bernice cocked her head in confusion. She shook Tifa's hand. "Hi, I'm Bernice. Thanks for saving me before. How long have I been out?"

"A few days. Say, you still feeling dizzy?"

"I'm fine. Just a little groggy from sleep, that's all."

"Great! In that case, shall we go meet the others? They've been waiting for you to awaken."

"Waiting…for me? Why?" asked Bernice, feeling more puzzled than ever.

"Never mind that for now. Shelke will fill you in later. So, how bout' it, wanna take a tour of our WRO headquarters?"

"WRO?"

"Yea, the World Regenesis Organization."

Not really sure what to say. Bernice nodded. "Ok. And um, who is Shelke?

"Don't worry bout the details, we're going to meet them now."

Tifa led Bernice out of the doors of the vast ward. Outside the door, two WRO soldiers saluted to Tifa as they walked past. Bernice cast a backward glance. _Wow, Tifa must be some kind of commander..._

Bernice looked around. As far as she could tell, they were on the ground floor. She gazed upwards and saw that the WRO headquarters consisted of many floors. Soldiers in the same uniform patrolled the building and they would occasionally past a few who would instantly stopped to salute and continue with what business they were on after Tifa returned their salutes.

Tifa led her past three golden plates which caught Bernice's eye. She stopped and read the words the capital letters on the first plate. _Heroes of the Jenova War. _Bernice looked down on the long list of names. _Reeve Tuesti, Cloud Strife, Yuffie Kisaragi, Nanaki (Red XIII), Cid Highwind… Tifa Lockheart…_

_Whoa! Wait a minute! Tifa… Lockheart…?_

She continued reading the second gold plate.

_Heroes of the Reunion War._

_Cloud Strife_

_Barret Wallace_

_Yuffie Kisaragi_

_Tifa Lockheart_

…

Bernice rubbed her eyes for a second, and then stared at the plate again. There was her name again. Bernice tore her eyes away from the second plate and glanced at the last plate.

_Heroes of the Dirge of Cerberus_

_Vincent Valentine_

_Reeve Tuesti_

_Cait Sith_

_Shalua Rui_

_Shelke Rui_

_Yuffie Kisaragi_

_Cloud Strife_

_Tifa Lockheart_

…

Bernice stood, dumbstruck. _Whoa, hero of THREE wars. She sure has been busy._

"I'm glad all that is over, our world is currently recovering from the last one." Tifa said, suddenly appearing beside Bernice, making her jump. Bernice could only nod in amazement. _Apparently, she had somehow fallen in with important company…_ "Shall we continue?" Tifa's voice pierced through her thoughts.

All of a sudden, Tifa's phone rang. She flipped it open and answered it. "Hi. Yea, she's awake now, I was thinking of introducing… hmm… sure, we're on our way. Meet you guys there."

She replaced her phone in her pocket and said to Bernice. "Come on, we'll be meeting the others in the commissioner's office." Tifa led Bernice towards the elevators which were located across the hallway.

They entered the neat, spacious office, where a small crowd gathered. The man who sat behind a desk stood up. _I guess that must be the commissioner._ Bernice tried her best to muster a sweet smile as she shook everyone's hand. Meanwhile, Tifa introduced each member present.

"This is Commissioner Reeve…" Tifa started.

"Tuesti?" asked Bernice.

"Yes…" Replied the stunned commissioner. "How'd you…"

Bernice shrugged as Tifa introduced the second person that was present. "Cloud…" Tifa said as she indicated a man with spiky hair.

"Strife." Bernice finished for Tifa. "Whoops, sorry…force of habit…" She blushed, feeling slightly embarrassed.

"No problem," said Tifa as she moved on. "Yuffie _Kisaragi_, Barret_ Wallace_, Cid _Highwind_…" As Tifa gestured towards a small figure who sat on Reeve's desk, Bernice's eyes lit up in excitement.

"Awesome! That is the most adorable plushie…" Bernice said as she picked the small figure up. To her surprise, the figure started to struggle.

"Plushie!" yelled Cait Sith. "I happened to be a very…" Bernice jumped backwards, dropping him in the process. "Whoa!" she exclaimed.

At this point, Tifa rolled her eyes heavenward and gave Cloud and Reeve her 'I-told-you-so' look.

As Bernice attempted to kneel down and apologize, a big furry creature strolled out from behind the crowd. It said, "Calm down, friend. I'm sure she didn't mean to insult you."

At the sight of Nanaki, Bernice fell backwards, and she stared fixatedly at him. "Whoa…you're the biggest _dog_ I've ever seen! ... Did you just talk!"

Nanaki turned to Tifa, thoroughly puzzled. "What's a 'dog'?" he asked.

Tifa shook her head. "Never mind." She helped the still dumbfounded teen to her feet. She indicated the small cat/ plushie-like figure, "This is Cait Sith, and that…" she indicated the massive creature, "…is Nanaki. He's not a dog, and yes, he can talk."

Bernice nodded, "Sorry bout' the mix-up." She blushed once more.

After that, Tifa noticed something. "Where's…"

Cloud said, "He had some business to attend to."

When they had finished 'properly' getting acquainted with each other, Reeve spoke. "Well, Bernice. We welcome you to our world and hope that you'll be able to make the most of your time here with us…Tifa, why don't you take her to see Shelke and fill her in on what's going on? Then perhaps she can go and meet with her new er…instructors."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Tifa took Bernice to the WRO laboratory, where a young girl (or at least she looks like a young girl) sat, working busily on her computer. Strange machinery as well as three large tank filled with fluorescent green liquid could be seen at the far end of the lab.

The girl stood up and in a semi-monotonous voice said, "Bernice, I expected you earlier. I assume that you are here to learn about the events which have brought you to Gaia."

Tifa spoke, "Shelke, I'll leave the two of you to get acquainted. I'll be back in a few hours."

Shelke nodded.

Together, the two girls went through countless files and articles concerning the recent crisis faced by the WRO. Bernice learnt of the prophecies of Chaos and Omega, the ruthless organization known as Deep Ground, and parts of the history of Gaia, as well as the missions of the WRO.

Also, Shelke told her why Tifa had been sent to rescue her. In addition, due to their common interests in computers (so to speak), they got to know a little about each other. And by the time Tifa returned to get Bernice, they had already become fast friends.

Bernice had been assigned a room of her own in the WRO headquarters, where she spent the night trying (sort of) to get some sleep. _How can they expect me to sleep? I've only been asleep for A FEW DAYS, besides…I'm too excited to sleep…_

The next day, after a light breakfast, Tifa took Bernice to the weapons room.

"Besides being taught to fight bare-handed, you'll be taught to use a weapon of your choice. Choose wisely…" Tifa winked.

At the sight of all the unique weapons available in the room, Bernice's heart leapt. _Thank Father Christmas!_

She wondered slowly through the isles, examining the wide array of unique weapons available. _So many kinds…all amazing…it's impossible to choose…spears…nah…bows…no way…swords…maybe…guns…oh, this is too much!_

Then, she saw it…the most beautiful weapon she'd seen so far. A three-barreled gun lay gleaming on top of a work table beside a can of polish. She admired the spectacular craftsmanship, the ingenuous design _Simple, elegant, practical._

"Actually, that one belongs to me." A deep voice shattered the silence and pulled the teenager from her thoughts.

Bernice turned around to see a tall man standing behind her. He wore black leather clothes and a tattered crimson cloak. But what intrigued her most about this man was that he possessed a golden claw instead of a normal left hand. "I was just admiring the…who…" she stammered.

"Vincent Valentine." The man replied. He strode forwards and picked the gun up. "This is my gun, the Cerberus." In one swift motion, he flicked his fingers, and the gun spun in his hand. In two shakes, the gun was safely put away at his side.

"That was amazing! How'd you do that?" _Man, this place is full of surprises!_

"Hmm…perhaps I'll show you sometime…" he said as he turned to leave.

They heard footsteps. Tifa appeared soon after. "So, guess you've met Vincent. Say, have you picked out a weapon yet?"

"Nah, not yet. There're just too many types to choose from…"

Tifa smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. You'll know when you've found the right one for yourself. But don't take too long, okay?"

Bernice nodded. She took a deep breath and continued sifting through the seemingly endless collection. Finally, after several long minutes of searching, her eyes fell upon a modest looking blade. The blade, which was roughly two feet in length, was thicker than most of the blades she'd seen so far. It looked like a formidable weapon to carry. The markings carved into the blade were beautiful. However, it was only when she picked the blade up that she realized the distinctiveness of this particular blade.

"A trigger…and a barrel!" she exclaimed. _This wasn't just a blade, it functioned as a gun as well! How cool is that!_

She felt the lines of the weapon. _Perfect,_ she thought. _And it's quite light too…considering._ _Simply remarkable…yes…you're the one!_

She took a moment to caress her new companion, and then brought it to the awaiting Tifa.

"Are you sure this is the one?" Tifa asked when she realized what Bernice had chosen. "Learning to use a gun-blade is no bed of roses…it's more like a bed of thorns…"

"Yes, absolutely. This is the weapon I will strife to master."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Tifa nodded. "That's the spirit." She thought for awhile. "And since none of the people you met in Reeve's office use the gun-blade… it's going to be even harder to learn…"

Bernice looked up at Tifa and Tifa saw sheer determination in her eyes. "I can do it, I know I can."

"Alright, I'll talk to the others and come up with a conclusion. And, you can hold on to your weapon. Try getting used to its weight."

"Yea! Thanks Tifa."

As they walked together towards Bernice's room, Bernice fingered her new weapon. The blade and the trigger looked like they were made out of silver; the rest was a snowy white colour. Flowery patterns were engraved upon the blade. Bernice asked, "When does training start?"

"When the others and I come up with whose going to train you and figure out the timetable," said Tifa with a chuckle. Tifa admired the girl's enthusiasm for learning. _She has no idea what she's in for._

_ooOoo_

At the end of the day, Tifa escorted Bernice to her room. Tifa reached in her pocket and pulled out a flip hand phone. It was silver and white in colour. "Here, the others and I thought this might come in handy. All our numbers are on speed dial but avoid calling unless it's very important." She hand the beautiful phone to Bernice. The phone had familiar markings on the cover, she took out her gun-blade. The markings were identical.

"But how did you…" she started.

"Call it a lucky guess," said Tifa with a sly wink. "You better get a good night's sleep, training will probably start tomorrow morning. Take a shower, the guest wardrobe has been filled a little for you." They said their goodnights and Tifa left.

Bernice stood in her room, looking at the two new items she was given today she felt a sudden urge to try them out. But, she decided against it. _The commissioner wouldn't appreciate holes in the wall and furniture._

She sat down on her bed and placed her gun-blade beside her and flipped open her new phone. The setting was beautiful. Semitransparent buttons and a slick design. Well, she'd never seen this model in the states before but she loved it.

She opened her phonebook. Tifa was right, she did have all their hand phone numbers, even Shelke's. She closed her new phone and placed it on her bedside table. She, now, turned her attention to her gun-blade. Bernice decided that she had better take Tifa's advice and start getting used to its weight. She picked it up. There were no bullets inside, so she taught it would be safe to practice it a bit. She did so for about half an hour, until her muscles started screamed in protest.

As she sat down heavily on her bed again, she wondered how she would be able to use her gun-blade in battle if she could not even lift it for more than half an hour! She bitterly reminded herself that her weapon wasn't even loaded.

She took a quick shower and looked in the wardrobe that was located not far from the bathroom. She donned a simple nightgown and lay down to sleep. Her gun-blade glimmered in the pale moonlight that shone through her window, on her bedside table next to her phone.

ooOoo

A WRO soldier appeared outside her door long after she had taken her breakfast and changed into her usual attire. The soldier informed her that the commissioner wanted to see her in his office.

She pocketed the new phone Tifa gave her last night. Bernice knew that she should probably bring along her gun-blade, though she not very sure where to pocket it. It would be terribly ill at ease for her to simply hold it in her hand as she walked. She finally decided to put it in one of the big pockets in her sleeveless coat. Looking in the mirror and patting her coat down to make the weapon beneath as unnoticeable as possible.

Having good and accurate memory since childhood, she soon found herself walking towards the double door Tifa had taken her to the other day. On one of the doors, there was a bronze plate that said: _Commissioner Reeve Tuesti. _On either side of the door, two WRO soldiers stood guard. Seeing Bernice approaching, one of them announced her arrival and a familiar voice was heard, "Oh, good, we've been expecting her. Let her in."

Bernice reached the door after the guard had come out again. They stood to one side and saluted as the two doors slid aside, bidding her entrance. She had to admit, she felt awkward at being saluted by the soldiers.

The doors slid close and Reeve stood up in greeting and said, "Well, good morning Bernice. I hope you slept well."

"Good morning, Commissioner, and yes, I did sleep well." Bernice looked around the room. This time, only five people including her were present. Three figures who stood on the left side of the room nodded to her in acknowledgement. She recognized them. Tifa was standing in between two men, both which Bernice had already met. Cloud Strife stood on Tifa's right hand side and Vincent Valentine stood to her right.

All of a sudden, Vincent's gazed narrowed. Feeling very uncomfortable under his gaze, Bernice shifted her weight uneasily.

In a swift movement, Vincent threw a black item at Bernice, which she caught easy enough. In the deep, coarse voice, he said, "Continued using your pockets as holsters and you'll saw a hole in your coat."

Bernice blushed slightly and took a closer look at what Vincent and thrown her. It was a black, leather holster with a matching leather belt. She took out her gun-blade from her coat pocket and saw that Vincent was right. The thread was being cut as she walked. She then deposited it in the holster Vincent gave her. She pulled the belt around her waist, letting her gun-blade hang limply beside her. It was a perfect fit.

"Thanks," said a still slightly scarlet Bernice.

"Bernice," said Reeve. "We have become aware that you have chosen the gun-blade as your weapon. Are you sure? There's no turning back after you've started your training."

"I'm sure." Bernice said firmly, in tone which reminded Cloud of Tifa.

Tifa was next to speak. "In that case, Bernice, meet your new instructors! I'll be instructing you in hand-to-hand combat and since none of us use the gun-blade, you'll have to learn the two functions separately. Cloud will be teaching you the art of sword-fighting and Vincent will take care of target practice."

Bernice stood, stunned for a moment. For the first time, Cloud spoke, "You object?"

Then, realizing how obvious that she was dumbstruck, she shook the feeling away. "No, it's not that. It's just that… I didn't think that I'd be trained by the heroes of the previous three wars."

Raising an eyebrow, Reeve asked, "You know about the three wars?"

Before Bernice could say anything, Tifa stepped in. "Reeve, if you didn't want people to know we were the heroes of the previous wars, you shouldn't have made those big, golden plates with our names on em'."

At this, everyone (except Vincent, that is, who merely shook his head) laughed.

Tifa continued, "I'll be teaching you hand-to-hand combat every morning from now on at 7 o'clock sharp. After lunch, you'll have a two hour break, and then in the afternoons, you'll have lessons with either Vincent or Cloud. Vincent on odd days—that is, Mondays, Wednesdays and so forth; and Cloud on even days. Is that clear?"

"Transparently!" replied Bernice enthusiastically. _I can't wait, bring it on!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

The three newly appointed 'instructors' were pleased with the teenager's zeal. Tifa continued, "Right, my training sessions will be conducted in the gymnasium; Vincent's will be in the shooting range and Cloud's in the courtyard." She asked, "Any questions?"

Bernice took a moment to digest the information. Finally, she asked, "Um, yea. Where are all the places you listed?"

"Go see Shelke later, she'll upload WRO's map unto your phone." Tifa said. "Anyway, anything else?"

The teenager realized yet another problem. She asked, "What day is it?"

"It's Thursday. Training starts today." Tifa peeped at the clock in her phone. It was ten thirty in the morning. "Well, since we're already more than halfway though my lesson, why don't you take the morning off to go see Shelke. Remember to meet with Cloud later though."

Bernice nodded and turned to Cloud. "See you there."

Cloud nodded back. "Don't forget to bring your gun-blade."

Tifa said, "Well, if there's nothing else…" she looked and Cloud, Vincent and Reeve. They all shook their heads. The commissioner said to Bernice, "You may go now."

Bernice said her thanks and made her way to Shelke's laboratory.

"I'm glad that you're here." Shelke said as she looked up from her computer. "Give me your phone."

Bernice fished out her phone and handed it to Shelke. Shelke plugged in the phone into her computer. Soon, Bernice was being tutored by Shelke on how to read the map. By noon that day, Bernice knew the headquarters like the back of her hand. "And just like all the others', I installed an intruder alarm too."

"Thanks a lot, Shelke. It looks like I still have around two hours before I have to meet Cloud for my first session."

Shelke smiled. "No problem." Shelke noticed the weapon that hung loosely beside Bernice. "A gun-blade, an interesting choice of weapon."

Bernice looked sown on her gun-blade. She took it out of the holster Vincent gave her and studied her weapon. "Hmm… maybe… but I still know nothing about how it is used."

Shelke cocked her head. "Well, that's not a problem at all. We could look it up if you like."

"Really? That'd be awesome, Shelke." Shelke smiled at this.

Together, they found tons of information concerning the gun-blade. Also, she found out its many uses. Advantages and disadvantages were listed down before her. It was truly an amazing weapon—the gun being its primary function. They even found pictures which showed how the weapon is held.

When the clock struck one forty-five, Bernice bid Shelke goodbye. According to the map that was uploaded into her phone, the courtyard was quite a distance from Shelke's lab.

She headed towards the elevators and hit the ground floor button. Instead of heading out the main glass doors, she went towards the back of the building.

Behind the large building, there was a large garden. Shrubs of all colours lined the courtyard. Cherry blossom trees could also be seen.

Bernice spotted Cloud in a large clearing in the middle of the garden. He had his back towards Bernice. She walked towards him.

Just as she arrived in touching distance of Cloud, a phone on a bench in front of Cloud rang.

"You're very punctual." Cloud noted as he walked over to switch off the alarm.

Bernice shrugged. On the stone bench near the edge of the clearing lay the biggest sword Bernice had ever seen. After silencing the phone, Cloud picked up his sword. _He's going to train me with that thing?_

Cloud rotated his sword with one hand, as if he was looking for something. He seemed to find what he was looking for. He reached up with his left hand and pulled a portion of the sword out. _He broke his sword?_

Cloud set the remains of his sword back on the bench and Bernice saw that there was a slot. _ Cool, a six- in-one sword!_

Cloud tossed his sword from his left hand to his sword arm. "So, shall we get started?"

Bernice responded by pulling out her weapon from its holster. Recalling one of the pictures she had seen that morning, she held the gun-blade in her right hand, with its tip lowered. Her grip was gentle yet firm. Also, she relaxed her shoulders and spread her feet further apart.

Watching her actions, Cloud nodded approvingly. _She came prepared. _Cloud continued, "Nice, let's start with the fundamentals. From now on, your gun-blade is going to be your closest companion. It is your means of survival. Now, tell me what the most important part in owning a weapon is."

"Care and maintenance", replied Bernice. _"Thank you, Shelke…" _Bernice thought to herself.

"Excellent!" Cloud smiled. Silently, he told himself, _"I'm starting to enjoy this already…"_ Cloud spent the next hour showing Bernice the proper ways to clean, polish and sharpen her blade. "Always remember to clean the blade before sliding it back into your holster. Polish and examine it periodically." Cloud reminded.

After that, he began teaching her some basic attacking and parrying techniques. Throughout the lesson, Bernice thoroughly enjoyed herself. Her mind soaked up everything Cloud taught her like a sponge. She swooned at the thought of finally being able to learn martial arts.

However, as she had never been one to exercise before, she tired easily. As she swung her gun-blade at Cloud again, the spiky haired blonde noticed his student faltering. He deflected the blow and lowered the tip of him sword. "You'll need to push your body past its limits in order to gain strength and stamina." He told her.

Bernice nodded and wiped the sweat from her brow. _"I hereby swear never to complain about my hardships to anyone!"_ Bernice forced herself to think as she took in a deep breath. Then, ignoring her already protesting muscles, she held up the tip of her blade, thereby signaling that she was ready to continue.

As the sun started to set, Bernice braced herself for another blow by Cloud. As their blades Cloud's blade struck hers, her muscles finally gave in. She staggered backwards, dropped her gun-blade and sank to her knees. She exhaled slowly, letting the breath carry some of her pain away. Cloud offered his hand. She took it and heaved herself to her feet. She picked up her gun-blade and wiped the dirt off with a part of her coat. "Guess I musta' slipped." She said as she resumed the defensive posture Cloud had taught her.

Cloud shook his head. "That's enough for today. You've done well in your first lesson. Keep it up and you'll have mastered sword-fighting in no time." He paused to gaze at the sunset. "It's getting late. Let's go wash up for dinner."

After wiping it clean, Bernice slid her gun-blade back into her holster and waited as her instructor gathered his things. Although she was sore all over, she had never felt happier.

After dinner, Bernice went with Shelke to her laboratory. From a drawer, Shelke took out a pair of black gloves and a matching pair of shoes. "These will help you to build strength in your hands and feet. The materials these are made from are unique. They have the ability to sense your metabolism and weight and have variable weight. I have programmed the shoes to be three times your body-weight and the gloves to be your exact body-weight. As you get use to their weight, their weight will increase. Soon, you'll be as strong as Tifa is. She was probably the only person here to have trained the old-fashioned way until you came. The rest of us have been exposed to mako either one way or the other."

Bernice kept her objections to herself and thanked Shelke for her new training aids. She tried them on and found them to be as light as ordinary gloves and shoes. Almost immediately after being activated, she felt their weight increase gradually. Soon, she found herself unable to lift her hands. Also, it was only after several tries that she was able to move her feet. _These things were heavy!_ She shook the thought away. After bidding Shelke goodnight, she started her slow trek towards her room.

After what seemed like an eternity of walking, stumbling, getting up and walking some more, she reached her room. She set an alarm for 5:30 am on her phone before taking a shower and getting into bed. _How am I supposed to train in these? I wonder how Tifa did it…_Before long, Bernice fell into a deep slumber.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

_The Cheery music of 'chocobo's theme' filled the room_ Bernice groaned. She sat up in the half-light of her room and rubbed the fuzziness from her eyes. The room she'd been assigned to was simple but spacious. As far as she could tell, its ceiling, walls, floor and even the furniture, seem to be made of the same kind of bluish-green metal. A wardrobe sat on one side of the bathroom door, and a desk and chair sat on the other. The bed on which she sat lay opposite the wardrobe. The two connected rooms were lit by an adjustable florescent light which was built-into the corners of the ceiling. The whole setup made her feel as if she were sleeping in the cabin of some great, futuristic ship.

She made to reach for her phone, only to pull it back half way. She winced in pain. Yesterday's rigorous training session with Cloud had left her muscles aching. Ignoring the aches which surged through her arms, she reached once more for her phone. She flipped it open, thereby silencing the alarm. Upon flipping her phone close again, she turned the knob located above the headboard and the room brightened, making her squint a little.

She yawned. She hadn't been up this early in years, but had decided that this was the only way she would be able to make Tifa's session on time. She got off her bed. The ground felt surprisingly warm to the touch. Out of habit, she made her bed.

After a quick shower, she donned the spare set of clothing she found in the guest's wardrobe—a white, sleeveless turtleneck, a pair long, black pants and a black corduroy coat. She pulled on some socks and fastened on her sword belt. Finally, she pulled on the gloves which Shelke had given her the night before and slipped her feet into her new shoes. Upon flexing her hands, the gloves and shoes were activated. She felt them gradually weigh her down.

While she slipped her gun-blade into the holster and her phone into her pocket, she glanced round to where her own clothes lay drying on the rail by the bathroom door.

Once satisfied that everything was in order, she left for the mess hall.

------

_Left foot…right foot…left foot…right foot…_She gripped her fists tighter as she struggled to walk with the weight of her shoes. She had begun to become more accustomed to them as she walked, but each step still took a huge amount of effort to accomplish. _At least I'm not stumbling anymore. _She thought bitterly.

Upon arrival at the mess hall, she checked the time on her phone. 6:10am, it showed. _Okay, so that gives me bout' 5 minutes to eat, and hopefully I'll be at the gym by 7._ She shook her head. Nah, _too little time._ Then, a smile crossed her face. She had an idea...

Bernice through the mess hall quickly, gathering the things she needed—a paper bag and some sandwiches. It was difficult to lift her hands at first, but before long, she was on her way to the gym once more.

_Left foot…munch…right foot…munch, munch…_Bernice ate a couple of sandwiches as she walked. Not only did it help to keep the rhythm of her walking (which she felt, made it easier to walk with the deadweight of her shoes), she was making great time.

When she arrived, she saw that she had arrived just a minute early. Tifa greeted her with a smile, "Cloud wasn't kidding about your punctuality…"

Bernice shrugged, "Just lucky, I guess."

Tifa studied her new student and saw the bag she was carrying. "What's in the bag?"

"Um…the reason I'm punctual…"

This earned a hearty laugh from Tifa. "Take out's?"

Bernice indicated her gloves and shoes. This produced an understanding 'Ah…' from Tifa. "Don't worry, you'll get used to em' soon. Just take it one step at a time"

Tifa beckoned her to come forwards and continued, "I guess I'll be coaching you on moving more efficiently with your new 'accessories'. And for now, we'll be working on increasing your stamina."

Bernice spent the next few hours walking round and round the gym. Surprisingly, she found it easier to walk with each passing lap. Tifa also showed her how to lift her arms without injuring herself. "Lift using your shoulder blades. Let the force come from beneath your arms." Bernice did so, and found that her hands did not ache as much as before, when she lifted it previously. "Don't swing your hand, that's cheating." Tifa scolded occasionally. "Don't drop em'. With those gloves on, you could end up dislocating your arms."

Bernice furrowed her brow. She was out of breath but said nothing. She followed Tifa's instructions with grit. By the time the session ended, her muscles felt numb. _Great…it hurts so much I can't even feel the pain anymore…_She thanked Tifa for the lesson and waited as Tifa left.

------

After that, she sat down on a bench and started eating the rest of the sandwiches. She took out her phone and checked the time. It was 12:45pm. _Enough time to rest for a while._ She patted her gun-blade fondly.

After a fifteen minute rest, Bernice double-checked the location of the shooting range. To get there, she would have to exit the building on the east side. The shooting range would be in the next block.

Sighing, Bernice got up. She put her phone away and threw the empty paper bag into the rubbish bin behind the bench. _Time to go…_

------

Bernice had to admit, it was certainly easier to get around after Tifa's lesson. In a half-hour's time, she had reached the eastern exit. She headed out the sliding doors and began making her way across the garden. Here, shrubs and small trees dotted the landscape. She was basking in euphoria when a strange dog-like creature sporting familiar colors jumped out from behind the shrubs.

The creature snarled at her, revealing a layer of long, sharp fangs. Thick, clear saliva issued from its gaping mouth. Bernice had barely pulled her gun-blade out before the creature lunged. In a flurry of black and blue, the teen found herself being pinned to the ground. She opened her eyes to see her gun-blade wedged between the creature's jaws. It jumped back, confused to find a mouth full of gleaming, sharp metal instead of the yielding neck-flesh it had sought. Apparently, Bernice had swung her gun-blade fast enough to get it between the creature's head and her body. Blood and saliva stained her gun-blade where the creature had bit it.

Lying on the ground, she thought about to weights on her hands and feet. It would have been futile for her to run. "HELP!" she screamed.

Meanwhile, the creature had recovered and made to lunge at its victim once more. Time seemed to slow down as it did so. Bernice had lifted her arms protectively over her face. She shut her eyes. _This was the end… _

Suddenly, BANG! Three shots sent the creature flying into a nearby tree. Bernice heard the swish of a cloak and several more shots. In a moment, it was over. She opened her eyes to see a tall figure looming over her. He helped her to her feet. "You alright?"

Bernice nodded. In his head, Vincent swore. He and the others would have to keep a closer watch on the girl from now on. Not that the DG couldn't be handled…after all, he'd single-handedly dealt with DG infiltrations before, even though the result wasn't always pretty. He waved that thought away and mused. _I'll have to tell Reeve about this attack later anyway. _

Bernice turned to where her attacker lay dead by the tree. "Whoa!" she exclaimed as the creature's body slowly turned into millions of sparkling specks, floating heavenward.

Vincent watched with amusement as the teen as she went to examine to spot where the creature's body had dissipated.

Bernice was confused. One moment, she was being attacked by some monstrosity, and the next, her attacker's body had disintegrated right before her eyes. Now, the body was gone. _It's as if it never existed!_

She turned towards her savior, puzzled. "Thanks. But…what just happened?"

"You were attacked by a DG guard hound." His reply was curt.

"I know that…but where did it go?"

"I killed it. So, it returned to the Lifestream. Things that die tend to do that…"

"Oh…" It was all she could think to reply. She remembered reading about it during her first visit with Shelke. _I didn't think they meant that so literally…_

Seeing the blank expression on Bernice's face, Vincent asked, "You…sure you're alright?"

Just then, Vincent's phone began to ring. He sighed, "Time to start our lesson." He took out his phone and silenced it. "If you think you're up to it, c'mon." He turned skillfully on the spot, allowing his cloak to swish gracefully after him as he stalked off.

At the sound of the alarm, Bernice had snapped back into reality. She picked up her gun-blade and followed her instructor.

------

Once inside, Vincent handed her a piece of rag. She took it and cleaned her weapon. On a table, an assortment of things was neatly laid. There were bullets, and a variety of cleaning aids.

"You already know that it is important to keep that thing in good shape." Vincent said.

Bernice nodded.

"Then, can I have a look at your gun-blade?"

Bernice handed it to him. To her shock, Vincent started to take it apart! "What are you…?"

"I just wanted to make sure, that's all." He answered as he laid each component on the table. "We'll put it back together again later." He continued studying each component as he took it apart. Then, he took his own gun, the Cerberus, out and started taking it apart too. He compared the different components of each gun.

After a while, he spoke, "Right, Bernice, I want you to memorize each of these components. You'll have to know your gun inside out."

He taught her the names and uses of each component. When they were done, Vincent showed her how to put the components back together. He told her that she would have to practice assembling and dismantling her gun-blade till' she could do it fast whilst blindfolded. He assembled the Cerberus with practiced speed, and Bernice was awed. Vincent showed Bernice how to assemble and dismantle the gun-blade. He also timed her as she did it. It took her seven minutes to dismantle and another ten to assemble it the first time she tried. On her next try, it took her a total of fifteen minutes.

"For starters, I want you to be able to assemble and dismantle in less than ten minutes during our next lesson."

"Fine."

Next, Vincent showed her how to lock and unlock her gun-blade as well as to load her gun.

As twilight came, Vincent ended their training session. As Bernice turned to leave, he called out to her, "One more thing. Always remember to keep that gun-blade of yours close, if it's no in your holster, you should be holding it."

"I will."

Vincent watched his pupil disappear into the fading light. All in all, the lesson wasn't as bad as he'd expected. _You've got a long way to go kid. But since I got you into this mess, I'll have to make you the best gunner on Gaia…_

------

That night, Bernice dismantled her gun-blade and laid each component neatly on her desk just as Vincent had done in the shooting range. She took care not to lose even the tiniest of screws. "Magazine, barrels, material slot…what was a materia anyway…revolvers, hammer, trigger…"She thought aloud as she tapped the respective components.It wasn't hardly as easy committing the components to memory as it was to memorize the WRO map.

_This is gonna take me a while. Better set tomorrow's alarm before I forget…_She did so, and then went back to her pervious endeavor. Several hours later, she managed remember them all. _I'll have to learn them by touch soon…_she thought grimly. Next, she practiced assembling and dismantling her gun.

At some point, she fell asleep with her gun-blade (thankfully) fully assembled.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

The clock hit five thirty in the morning, but today, there was no cheery chocobo music to fill the air.

The eyes of the figure on the bed flew open instantly. She swung her legs off the edge of the bed and came to sit upright. She then pushed herself to her feet.

She turned the knob and the room steadily grew brighter. She walked across the carpeted floor and turned on the shower in the next room. After a quick morning shower, she donned a shirt. Long at the sleeves and as black as the one she wore when first coming to this world two years ago. The only difference was that this one was made out of leather and the other cotton.

She pulled on an equally black pair of long pants and slipped on a sleeveless, dark purple coat. A coat was starting to become a trademark of hers. Lastly, she buckled on her leather holster under her coat and inserted her gun-blade. She also tucked in her phone into an additional leather pocket she had fixed on her belt not too long ago.

Her long, dark hair flowed down around her shoulders. Facing the mirror, she gathered her hair high in a single braid that she reached her waist with a length of violet, satin ribbon.

On her desk, which she made into a dressing table, lay two dark blue gloves, underneath the table, was a pair of matching boots. Without a word, she put them on. Carefully, she flexed them and she felt her limbs grow heavier. Unlike the first few times she wore them, she noticed that they were lighter and lighter with each passing day, which was unusual since the gloves and boots were made to grow heavier when she felt accustomed to their current weight.

Bernice exited her room to find herself on marble flooring. Checking the time, she saw it was exactly six o'clock, as usual.

She reached the mess hall ten minutes later, her personal record. The people on duty in the mess hall had already had a bag of sandwiched ready for her. She said her thanks and made her way to the gym.

She reached there nearly effortlessly. She placed the half empty bag of sandwiches to one side of the great room. There was still half an hour before training would officially start and fifteen before Tifa would arrive.

She got on her feet and started to warm up. After a while, she heard something. It sounded like rubber rubbing against recently waxed marble. A grin grazed the corner of her mouth. Bernice counted, "Five…four…three…two…"

In conjunction to 'one', Bernice turned and saw the double doors part and Tifa coming through.

"You're early," Tifa noted, she wore her usual attire. But today, she brought a large sling bag with her.

Bernice shrugged. "Force of habit," Bernice said, her grin was replaced by a smile.

Tifa chuckled, "Well, Miss Force of Habit, is there anything you wanted to ask before we get started on today's training?"

Bernice looked unsure but she said, "Well, I think there's something wrong with my gloves. They don't seem to be getting heavier…"

"Hmm…?" Tifa cocked her head. "Let me see."

Bernice extended her right arm so that Tifa could inspect them. After examining every inch oh the glove, a smile crept slowly unto her face.

"You're done with them," Tifa said. "Congratulations."

Bernice merely blinked incomprehensibly. "What?"

"You've drove them to their limits. They won't go any higher." Suddenly, Tifa had an idea. "Take them off, let's see how good you really are now." Tifa opened the bag that she carried and fished out a pair of normal black gloves and shoes and tossed it to Bernice.

Bernice caught the items and saw that she was in no position to argue with her instructor. She replaced her gloves and shoes and looked up. Tifa was in the middle of the large room. She stood in a familiar pose, one which she had taught Bernice countless times.

Ready for battle, Bernice posed and bit her lower lip hard. She had never been asked to fight hand-to-hand with Tifa. She gulped. Taking a deep breath, she ran forward.

Bernice's first attack was blocked by Tifa, who held two of her arms out in a cross. Bernice didn't hold there for long, instantly, she lashed out with her right leg and took Tifa out from under her. While falling to the right, Tifa immediately caught the floor with her hands and cart wheeled away to the side.

Tifa's feet barely touched the floor when she saw Bernice in the corner of her eyes. Bernice ran at her and delivered a series of blows at her. During one of her punches, Tifa caught her by the wrist and sent Bernice sprawling into the opposite wall.

Despite the force that sent her into the wall, Bernice landed lightly on the wall. Bernice kicked off the moment she made contact. Tifa ducked as Bernice zoomed overhead.

Seeing that she had missed her target, Bernice flipped once and landed on the floor. Suddenly, a sharp pain sheered through her head as Tifa's fist found its mark on the side of her head. Ignoring the pain, Bernice ducked without delay in order to avoid another blow from Tifa.

Again, Bernice lashed out with her leg. Tifa jumped and Bernice was again on her feet in no time. While Tifa was still in the air, Bernice fell forward, gripped the floor with her hands and pushed off, delivering a hard kick in Tifa's direction. In the air, Tifa twisted her body and Bernice's legs flew past. Landing on her feet, Bernice felt a pain as Tifa brought her body around and kick Bernice squarely on her shoulder.

Tifa sent Bernice tumbling in the opposite direction. The force of the blow caused Bernice to rebound several times before coming to a halt with her face down on the ground.

Shaking her head clear, Bernice got to her feet. Her head spun and limbs felt like jelly. Nausea gripped her stomach and Bernice sank to one knee.

A hand appeared beside her and she took it. Tifa helped her to her feet and aided her in walking over to the nearest bench. They both sat down heavily. Tifa took out a green materia out of her pocket as Bernice wondered: _How did that NOT get broken during the battle?_

Bernice felt all the pain lifted from her body as Tifa used the cure materia. "That should do it," said Tifa as she put away the materia. "You did really well for your first _real _battle, you actually managed to wear me out this time. One day, you might even surpass me."

"Really!" asked Bernice, overwhelmed with excitement and joy.

"No," said Tifa bluntly. "But as your instructor, I'm supposed to be supportive," Tifa added with a grin that could only be described as EVIL.

"Oh, umm… thanks, I think."

"No problem," Tifa said brightly. "Now, shall we go to the roof?"

"Roof?"


	10. Author's Note

_Authors note:_

_A big THANK YOU to all the readers who have read my story. Sorry for the lack of updates recently (I'm currently suffering from a mild bout of low self esteem, LOL)_

_Anyways, I don't mean to sound childish, but…will someone please review my story already! I'd like to hear what you think, especially about my writing skills (my resources here are limited and a fellow needs to get constructive criticism from somewhere…)_

_Flames are not only welcomed, they are encouraged. (but then again, so are good reviews)_

_On that note, can someone explain what YAOI and YURI are? Thanks again._

_PS. Everyone who reviews gets a cookie. Two if you flame my writing… XD _


	11. Chapter 10

_Author's note_: _Thank you for your reviews! I know this chapter is short, but it is only meant to be a short cutscene. I will update ASAP. _**  
**

**Chapter 10**

Hundreds of miles away, a man paced a narrow platform overlooking a massive underground hangar, filled with hundreds of mako tanks. The dark aura enshrouding him swirled menacingly as he surveyed the fruit of his efforts.

The hangar was dark, save for the eerie acid green light projected by the mako. Every now and then, a grotesque figure, barely human, would twitch within its mako prison, causing the man's eyes to alight with glee. _Don't worry, you'll have your share of blood soon, and we shall have our vengence on that crimson-caped menace...  
_

Indeed, this spawning bay, as well as the many others, had become one of the two devotions of his soul for the past two years. He had placed the duty of overseeing the spawning project upon himself both for the love of his brother and for the love of the environment it presented. After all, darkness was his passion.

Footsteps, steady and deliberate, echoed through the cavernous hall. Nero the Sable stopped his pacing. In a heartbeat, he had already identified his visitor. An unseen smile crossed his lips as his beloved brother approached.

"Nero…" Weiss acknowledged.

"Brother, what a pleasant surprise." He answered.

"Are they ready yet?"

"Soon brother…" the mechanism he wore twitched, betraying his own impatience. "And then we shall have our revenge upon that wretched being. The new units will be far stronger than our previous troops."

The white-haired man nodded in satisfaction and turned to leave. Nero hesitated before asking, "How fares our leader?"

Weiss sighed, "Still obsessing over that girl we failed to obtain. But, he is confident that our plan will succeed and that…the girl would join us when the time comes."

"But, she is being trained by the enemy. How can he be certain that she would become our ally?"

"That, Nero, is something he wouldn't disclose, even to me. Although, it does bother me that even though he is hell bent on acquiring her, he hasn't made any attempt to do so since that hound failed its attempt. He has shown no _other_ implications of being weak." He shrugged his shoulders and strode off, leaving Nero to puzzle over their leader's actions, or rather, his lack of actions.


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Tifa's hair whipped playfully in the wind. Arms folded, she shut her eyes, relishing in the coolness of the breeze.

Sadly, the luxury was shared by Bernice. It was her first visit to the roof, and the unexpected lack of railings had unnerved her. The height at which she was standing had, by no means frightened her, but the insecurity coursing through her veins was sending chills up her spine. She winced in spite of herself at the thought of falling off. Her legs were starting to feel like jelly, but instead of plopping down (which seemed remarkably tempting just then), she simply gritted her teeth and hugged herself more tightly, hoping to muster just a little bit of comfort, even a little…_Surely Tifa didn't expect to have a brawl up here._

She turned her gaze towards Tifa to find her smiling at her. That smile, that reassuring smile…since the first time she saw it (which if you remember, was in the park in her homeworld), she had marveled at the instantaneous effect it had on her being. She felt calmer now, and so she loosened the grip she had upon herself.

"Yuffie will be here soon." Tifa said.

"Yuffie?" _The peppy ninja was hardly ever seen at headquarters at all. Why would she be involved in today's training session? On that note, what in heaven's name were they doing on the roof? _Her curiosity got the better of her. "Why are we waiting for Yuffie?"

As if in answer, the ninja in question bounded out the door leading up to the roof. She was holding three metallic boards. "Hi, guys!" She said in her usual merry way. She turned to the half-stunned Bernice. "So…you ready for your first flying lesson?"

"F-flying lesson?" Looking dubiously at the boards, she gulped. _Isn't it bad enough to be standing on a roof thousands of feet high?_

Bernice felt a hand on her shoulder. Tifa was beaming at her. "Don't worry. By the time we're done with you, you won't be able to get enough of it."

Meanwhile, Yuffie had been busying herself with the assembly of the hover boards. And when she was done, they did look rather impressive. _Perhaps it would be fun after all…_

True enough, at the end of the lesson, Bernice had become an excellent aviator. _And I'm lovin' every bit of this!_

Before she left for lunch, Tifa took the opportunity to teach her how to land on freefall. "Hey Bernice." Tifa called.

"Yeah?"

"You wanna take the express way down?"

"Express way?" Bernice asked, the word 'huh' was written all over her face.

Tifa gestured towards the edge of the roof.

"You're kidding, right?"

Tifa crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. This was the first time her student had ever questioned her judgment. "Would you quit worrying already? It's perfectly safe…well, maybe not perfectly, but you'll be fine as long as you do it right. You only have to do what I do while in mid-air and then make sure that you kneel with one knee lower than the other when you land. It's important to keep your weight evenly placed between your legs. Leaning out a little helps too." Tifa showed her the posture. "Make sure you land correctly, or you'll shatter your bones."

_Yeah, REAL reassuring Tifa…_ "Alright, let's do this!" Bernice shouted in an attempt to hide her doubt.

"That's the spirit! Now, on three…one…two…THREE!" They hurled themselves off the roof. As they plunged, Bernice felt her viscera rise towards her head. This made her feel slightly nauseated. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Tifa stretch out her hands and arch her body. _She's going to somersault. _Bernice did likewise. After a few flips, the uncomfortable sensation left her.

The ground rushed up to meet them, yearning to crush them in its hard embrace. Another flip, and THROP…both women alighted, unscathed on the cement platform just outside the headquarters. They straightened.

"Whoa! I actually did it!" Bernice did a once over on herself, still stunned that she had survived the fall uninjured. "That was more fun than flying!" she exclaimed.

"Glad you liked it." Tifa had fixed on her, a gaze which screamed 'I-told-you-so'.

"Thanks, Tifa. Um, I'm gonna go to the shooting range now, okay?"

Tifa nodded. "Have fun…" her voice trailed off "…I guess." It was hard to fathom that anyone could have 'fun' whilst they were with Vincent Valentine, even though he'd become more open with them since the whole 'Omega incident'.

-----------

At the shooting range, Bernice retrieved her gun cleaning kit and proceeded to the lone table. As she polished her gun-blade, she reflected upon her tutors, the people she'd come to love as part of her family. Since she arrived on Gaia, Tifa had been like a sister to her, guiding her and watching over her every day. She made her feel as if Gaia had always been her home. _And it is…This…this is where I belong…_ In fact, Bernice had made the day she arrived on Gaia her official birthday.

Her thoughts wandered to Cloud. The spiky-haired blonde was, for the most part, a quiet person who seldom joined in the 'social affairs' (as he liked to call them) which the folks at the WRO often held in the mess hall after dinner. However, with his encouragement, he had pushed Bernice into becoming the formidable swordsman she was now.

Finally, her thoughts centered on Vincent. Mr. Valentine (She called him that because she felt that the he had become the authoritative figure in her life.) had never once uttered a word of praise to her. However, it was under the strict tutorship of his that her marksmanship had improved drastically over the two years which she had spent training with him. It had been frustrating at first, but she had come to appreciate her instructor's stoic demeanor.

Of her three tutors, Mr. Valentine was the one she'd seen least outside of their training sessions. And when she did see him, he was usually standing in some secluded corner, arms folded and head bowed, deep in thought. _It was as if a heavy burden from some dark past weighed down upon him._

As Bernice had hardly ever been able to strike any proper conversations with him during their training, she came to know him through Cid's reminiscences of the 'good ol' days' after dinners when he had had too much to drink. He often told of the heroic deeds accomplished by their very own 'Crimson Avenger'. However, it did puzzle her that whenever everyone gathered round to listen to Cid's tales, Vincent would slunk off with a pained look on his face. _I wonder why he feels so upset about the stories…Cid's said nothing but good things about him…_Cait Sith had once told her that despite his apparent indifference, Vincent would always be the first to act if anyone were in trouble.

Presently, Bernice had finished polishing her blade. As she started cleaning the barrels, she recalled a conversation she had with Shelke some months ago…

"_I wonder why Mr. Valentine seems so sad all the time."_

"_It's just the way he is, Bernice. He's been through a lot, especially since the conflict with Deep Ground started."_

"_But he managed to take out all the bad guys SINGLE-HANDEDLY…"_

"_Well, the whole experience caused him a lot of pain. You don't get over a crisis just like that, you know? Besides, it would seem that he didn't manage to kill the Tsviets, or rather their leader anyway. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here."_

"_He's…is he upset about my being here?"_

"_I didn't say that. But I do think he is upset because he failed his mission."_

"_Well he did destroy Omega and saved the world, didn't he?"_

"_Yeah, but Weiss is still running loose. No one blames him for it, considering the circumstances, but he still feels responsible for it." _

In the present, Bernice took a moment to admire the shininess of her newly-cleaned gun-blade; little did she know that…

--------------

…in an unseen corner, Vincent stood silently, watching his student. She had been an excellent pupil and her marksmanship was (he admitted) comparable to his, back when he was a Turk. _She handle's that gun-blade well._ He noted quietly.

He thought about that faithful night, two years ago when they had found out that Weiss was still alive. He sighed. Just when he'd resolved the matter between Lucrecia and his past, another tragedy literally falls into his lap. Deep Ground was back from the dead, and what was worst, they were after someone. The familiar pang of guilt tugged at his heart. _ She shouldn't even be here. She shouldn't have had to face the dangers of our world. My failure has earned her two years of strenuous training and more…_

Still, he'd succeeded in making her a skilled gun-slinger. _No…her aiming may be noteworthy, but will she be able to kill?_ He shook his head. This was yet another curse he had bestowed upon her. In order to survive, her hands would have to be stained by blood. _At least it'll be her enemy's blood that'll stain her hands. Cloud, Tifa and I have made sure of that._

But the question still remained. _Will she kill?_ He had to find out. He had to be sure. Otherwise, all their efforts would have been for naught.

He gave himself a determined nod and stepped out of the shadows. Holding a metallic ring loosely in his claw, he approached Bernice.

----------

"M-Mr. Valentine…" she stammered. Her instructor's sudden appearance had startled her.

Vincent nodded slightly in acknowledgement. "Here," he said. In one swift movement, he'd placed the metal band firmly on her head.

She drifted off. He caught her limp body and laid her gently on the table, beside her gun-blade whilst taking care not to let the band slip from her temple. "See you on the other side, Kid." He produced another metal band from underneath his cloak. Sitting down, the placed it on his own head.

_Author's Note: The above is a result of my setting aside my ton of homework (yet again). I hope you've enjoyed reading it as much as I had enjoyed writing it! PLEASE REVIEW!_

_Oh, and I haven't forgotten my cookie deal. Both and ChaosDynasty gets a cookie each! Thanks, guys! _


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

She was falling...

One second, she was on firm ground, then the next, it seemed like the ground had swallowed her whole into a deep abyss. The vision before her eyes darkened as she tumbled endlessly.

Despite the shock, she managed to land lightly on the metal platform under her. Her hand instinctively came to rest on her gun-blade. Bernice took a moment to thank her lucky stars that Tifa taught her how to free fall earlier that day.

Bernice stood up from her kneeling position and looked over the railing. Her surroundings were, in a word: Chaos. She appeared to be in a city at night. The remnants colorful tents and festival decorations lay scattered, littering the streets. Smoke arose in various parts of the city, making the air dry and dusty. Crackling flames threw eerie shadows on the stone walls. Familiar uniformed soldiers were ushering adults and children into large metal containers.

"What's going on? Where am I?" She was so caught up in curiosity, that she only noticed the three soldiers behind her at the last possible second.

The trio opened fired as Bernice spun around, gun-blade flying from her holster to her hand. She deflected the bullets with ease. After a few shots, the soldiers ran out of bullets and had to reload. Bernice saw the window of opportunity and took aim.

The soldiers froze at the unexpected resistance. Bernice grinned at their astonishment. Her cocked her gun and her index finger started to squeeze the trigger. Then, she hesitated. A bead of sweat ran down the brow, her grin replaced with a face of uncertainty. _Am I really a killer?_

One of the DG soldiers recovered and having finished reloading his gun, he pointed his gun at Bernice. BANG!

Bernice's eyes grew wide as the sound of gunfire repeated two more times. She stood, dumbfounded as the soldiers on the roof in front of her collapse one by one.

Bernice turned swiftly to see Cerberus smoking at the barrels. Vincent lowered his gun and said in a harsh tone, "NEVER hesitate!"

Bernice shrunk under her tutor's intimidating gaze. Blushing slightly, she apologized.

Vincent's harsh tone was replaced with his deep, soothing voice. "Don't hesitate. It's either their blood or yours, preferably theirs though. Come on, we have much ground to cover." He turned to walk across a long pipe that adjoined the platform that they were on with another.

Bernice followed in silence. When they were safely on the other side, Bernice finally mustered enough courage to ask, "Where are we?"

"Kalm." Her tutor said, not looking back.

"'_Calm'? _This is anything but calm!"

"It once was," Vincent said, with only the slightest hint of sorrow in his voice.

Bernice noticed this. You don't train four times a week and not know when your teachers are expressing their sorrow (even when they were impassive. And Vincent Valentine was about as impassive as they came).

"There is no time to explain. Just utilize what you've been taught over the two years and you will endure. Just don't go getting yourself killed."

Vincent led Bernice down a nearby stairway. So far, they had been able to slip past two companies of soldiers on patrol.

Down and down they went, with their senses on high alert and guns at the ready. The smell of charred flesh and burning debris chocked their senses. As they neared the bottom landing, an overwhelming smell wafted through the air causing Bernice's stomach to knot. However, if Vincent had smelt it, he showed no signs of discomfort.

Bernice pondered. She just couldn't put her finger on what could have caused such a putrid smell. Her curiosity was answered as they reached the bottom landing. The sight before them nearly made her double over with nausea.

The rancid heap lay before their feet. Flies swarmed in frenzy above what was once the body of a man, oblivious to both gunmen and the stifling heat. There were gaping holes in the thighs as well as the upper torso. Squiggles of pink viscera could be seen amongst the bloody mass. The man's features were contorted in an expression of pure terror.

She looked away and tried to swallow the lump in her throat. It was a while before she felt Vincent's ruby eyes bearing softly down upon her.

"What monster…" She choked on these words.

"A Deep Ground guard hound." He explained. "This," He indicated the corpse. "This is why we fight…why we kill. Evil unchallenged is evil sanctioned. We destroy evil to stop them from denying the innocent of their lives, and of their freedom."

Unbidden tears streamed inexorably down her face. She didn't know why she cried. Perhaps it was the fear, the uncertainty…no…she cried because she knew…her future would be a bloody struggle. Either way, she was thankful that Vincent had let her be. Her heart ached for someone to hold her, to comfort her, and to tell her that everything would be alright. She felt so…alone. But she knew, Vincent's silence _was_ his way of comforting others.

For several minutes, silence was perturbed only by the crackling sound of nearby fires and the buzzing of flies. Bernice locked her gazed into Vincent's ruby-red eyes. She felt better, knowing that she wouldn't have to traverse the perilous streets of Kalm on her own. Her tear-stained face shone in the firelight. With determination in her now-tearless eyes, she said, "Let's go."

Vincent nodded, his face betraying no emotions whatsoever. Before them, the remains melted into a billion shining specks. Both the corpse and its odor faded away. _It's gone back to the lifestream…_

Vincent opened the door on the other side of the landing. His eyes widened as he realized that he had forgotten to ready the Cerberus. Unfortunately, the Deep Ground Soldier waiting on the other side had been well-prepared for the confrontation.

It was only due to Vincent's innate instincts that the bullet intended for his chest merely grazed his left shoulder. However, before the Cerberus had cleared its holster, a second gun-fire had sounded.

The soldier went limp. Immediately, he knew that Bernice had fired her gun-blade while he was trying to dodge the bullet. When this realization had settled upon him, he was at once proud of his student's steadfastness as well as ashamed of his own carelessness. But, this was no time to be distracted by his emotions. He shook them off, wincing a little as he did so.

"Mr. Valentine, are you alright?"

To tell the truth, he wasn't certain. _It shouldn't have hurt that bad._ He put the Cerberus away so that he could use his hand to apply pressure on the wound. The pain caused him to lean against the door-frame. He was confused. _It REALLY shouldn't be hurting this badly._ He removed his hand from the wound only to find twice as much blood as he had expected. The wound continued to bleed. _Something's definitely not right._

He turned his gaze towards Bernice, and said, "Bernice, bring me his gun."

She didn't hesitate to respond. She retrieved the weapon in question and handed it to him. He fiddled with it, staining it with his blood-stained glove. He emptied the magazine, and to his astonishment, he found himself holding crimson bullets. _Death penalty bullets! How…? No,_ _must keep calm._

"Mr. Valentine?" Bernice was worried. In her mind's eye, Vincent Valentine was a hero, silent and strong. There was no way he could be felled by a single bullet. After all, the bullet hit no critical areas. _It was only a graze to his shoulder…right?_

"There isn't much time. Let's get out of here." That was all he said. There was no point in worrying her. But he could not hide the fact that what had began as a harmless exercise, had become a serious mission. He had to get them to the fountain quickly.

They made their way through the streets. He continued to ignore the searing pain in his shoulder, and held Cerberus weakly in his hand.

Whenever they saw civilians being chased by Deep Ground, Vincent and Bernice would shoot down their pursuers. Also, they had checked every nook and cranny along the streets to assure the survivors that the coast was clear, and to give them the directions to safe zones.

After what had seemed an eternity, they neared a junction filled with several sealed containers and a great fountain. A wave of relief swept through Vincent's being. He was pale (well, paler than usual) from blood-loss and he had begun faltering more and more with every step he took. Here they were at last, the check point where he could get them back to the real world. However, there was still one more task at hand.

Strangely, he had begun to feel better, much better. The familiar tingle made by the magic of a cure materia could be felt. Since he carried no such materia with him, he could only suppose that someone was tending to his body in the real world. He was at once thankful and filled with dread. This could only mean that someone had found him bleeding and unconscious. He was definitely going to get an earful when he 'returned'.

A high-pitched scream pulled him out of his reverie. _The girl!_ Up front, a pair of guard hounds were in hot pursuit of a mother and her child. He knew that in the alley ahead, the mother would soon be killed and the girl dragged away if they didn't act fast.

"Bernice, you get the girl."

She nodded in agreement. Vincent rushed to the aid of the mother. Just as the hound was about to pounce on her, Cerberus's bullets found their mark on fur and flesh, sending its target crashing into the adjacent alley wall. It fell unto the ground, dead.

Meanwhile, Bernice had managed to take down the other hound before it was able to drag its prey into a container.

After witnessing their reunion, Bernice's surroundings blazed into a brilliant white. Her eyelids shut tight, shielding her eyes from the stinging brightness. The ground beneath her melted away. She was falling again.

--------

It was late. Tifa had been pacing the hall, trying to solve the conundrum at hand. Vincent had failed to show up at their meeting earlier that evening. The others had supposed that he had decided to stay back and spend more time training Bernice, and thus no alarm was raised. The fact became evident when she found Bernice missing during dinner. Therefore, everything should be fine.

But if that were so, why was her gut telling her otherwise? She paused and tried to clear her head of what she now considered to be mild paranoia. _Surely they couldn't be in any trouble. Vincent's with her. Besides, it was not as if they had left headquarters, right? _She furrowed her brow at the thought. _No. _Even Vincent, with his fondness for being elusive, wouldn't run off without telling them. She contemplated on going to check up on them. _No, we agreed never to interrupt each other during training sessions. _She reminded herself that training sessions didn't end until the instructor called for the dismissal.

The sound of quick, approaching footsteps drew her out of her thoughts. Instinctively, her body tensed itself into a defensive position. She relaxed only when the figure had come into view and registered in her mind.

"Jason?" Tifa asked, raising a questioning eyebrow. The WRO soldier stopped suddenly in front of Tifa, gasping for breath. He gave her a weak salute.

"What is it?" she asked anxiously. Something was obviously wrong.

"Blood!" he half-shouted.

Tifa took no pain to hide her dismay, "Where?"

"…shooting range…Mr. Valentine…Bernice…unconscious…metal bands on their heads…tried waking…no response…" he gasped with each painful breath.

Tifa's expression was now a mixture of shock and dismay. Grabbing Jason's shoulders, she said, "Go to the lab, get Shelke to meet us at the shooting range. Hurry!"

"Yes, ma'am!" And he was off.

Before hearing his response, Tifa had already broken into a run. As she tore towards the shooting range, she pulled out her cell phone and dialed Cloud's number. _C'mon, pick up!_

"Tifa?" came a reply.

"Cloud, shooting range, NOW! And bring a cure materia."

Cloud knew better than to argue. The task sounded urgent. "Right," he said. Tifa hung up and pocketed her phone.

Before long, Tifa reached the eastern block. The shooting range was located on the second floor.

A drop of blood fell from above, causing her to make an abrupt stop. She followed it with her gaze. The small patch of concrete had been stained red. _No! _She shook her head in disbelief.

Just then, she heard, "Tifa, what's wrong?" Cloud and Shelke had arrived.

She turned a fearful gaze at her friends and stared back at the crimson puddle.

Their eyes widened at the sight of the blood. Cloud's voice cut through the still air, "Upstairs, now!"

The trio ran up the stairs and came upon a pair of bullet-proof glass doors. Blood oozed from under the doors, forming a steady stream, flowing to the edge of the corridor, where it would eventually trickle down into the puddle they'd seen earlier.

The doors parted as the trio rushed in. Bernice's limp form was laid neatly on the table. Her gun-blade lay at her side.

Vincent however, was slumped on the floor, next to the door. The source of the blood appeared to be a wound on his shoulder. Indeed, the blood still flowed freely, a peculiarity since Vincent's enhanced physiology should have healed the wound in a matter of minutes. Both of them wore similar metal bands.

Tifa strode towards Bernice and began checking for any signs of injury while Cloud tended to Vincent. He hoisted his comrade-in-arms into a sitting position and removed the stained collar and tattered cloak. _Strange, the clothing was intact._ Blood continued to seep through the leather. He held the materia over the wound and invoked its power. Meanwhile, Shelke busied herself with studying the metal bands.

Once satisfied that Bernice was unharmed, Tifa turned to Shelke and asked, "What's going on, Shelke?"

"He's using a simulation to train her." She replied matter-of-factly.

"Simulation? Who programmed this? I didn't know the WRO had any training simulations."

"We don't. No one programmed the simulation. Vincent's using his own memories."

"Well, why was he bleeding then?" Cloud interjected.

Shelke shrugged, "I guess he got hurt during the simulation."

This time, it was Tifa who spoke, "But, that means…if they get killed in the simulation…" she couldn't bear to finish the sentence.

Shelke shook her head, "Loss of life during the simulation would only result in the person being pulled out of the virtual reality. However, loss of life here in the real world while a person's mind is in the simulation would cause the person's mind to stay stuck in that virtual reality."

Cloud frowned and said, "Can you pull them out now?"

"No." she answered. "It's his memory. He's the only one who can end the simulation."

Just then, Vincent opened his eyes. The gun-slinger staggered clumsily to his feet. He was still weak from blood-loss. He had barely taken a few tender steps forwards when he felt Tifa's fist connect with his stomach. He stumbled backwards, out of both pain and shock.

"What were you thinking? You nearly died out here!" he heard her yell. In response, he locked his eyes onto hers, gave her an apologetic shrug and said, "She needed a little help in crossing that last hurdle."

Without another word, he steadied himself using the shelf which lined the wall and made his way gingerly towards his still-unconscious apprentice.

---------

Bernice's eyes fluttered open. She squinted and waited for the fuzzy image to clear and reveal Vincent Valentine looming over her once more.

As her senses returned to her, she realized that she was still in the shooting range. "A dream?" she asked.

Vincent shook his head. "A simulation." He corrected. He helped her off the table and lifted the metal band off her head. He let it clatter onto the table. She had proven herself a formidable fighter and he was pleased.

Wobbling slightly on the spot, Bernice studied her now cloak-less instructor. It was an awkward sight. However, her feelings shifted from numb confusion to anxiousness when she noticed the dried blood caked on his left shoulder. She also noted that he was leaning heavily on his claw, which had gouged deep dents into the edge of the wooden table. He was also clutching his abdomen loosely with his gun-arm.

Vincent's face was pale against the fluorescent lighting. His expression was soft and stoic.

Her face screwed up in concern, "You alright, Mr. Valentine?"

He shook his head. Closing his eyes, he muttered, "Vincent."

"Hmm…?" She cocked her head. Vincent's response had been nearly inaudible.

He threw a soft gaze unto the youthful gun-blader, and with a faint smirk, he said, "Vincent, my friends call me Vincent."

Bernice couldn't help but smile at that. She had finally achieved her goal. With the recent trauma she had faced momentarily forgotten, she basked in euphoria.

Across the room, her three friends mirrored her smile.


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

A powerful warrior stood on a small metallic platform. The room was dark, lit only by green mako lamps which seemed to amplify the twilight instead of dispelling it. Not that he minded, as his eyesight had long been accustomed to the tenebrosity. Of course, his genetically enhanced senses were a benefit as well. The metal links of his armor clinked softly as he flexed his sole onyx-colored wing.

He surveyed the three figures knelt on one knee before the platform.

The first one on his right, Weiss the Immaculate, though battle worn, was an exceptional warrior. He would prove a useful tool. After all, he would not have saved him, nor any of the others for the matter had he not considered them to be useful to him in accomplishing his pernicious goals. He moved his gaze to the next figure.

Metal wings twitched constantly. Nero the Sable, Master of Darkness. Albeit 'unstable', he possessed a useful ability, he decided. To Nero's right, the only female present.

Flaming red hair flowed down her back. Rosso the Crimson regarded him with dangerous eyes. She utilized an interesting weapon, depending more on speed than power. He reminded himself that swiftness was just as important.

"Rise and report," he said with a gesture of his hand. His voice was malicious and edged with evil.

They rose to their feet and Nero was the first to speak. "Master, the troops stand ready and are awaiting your orders."

"Excellent, for two years we have prepared for this day. You all know what you are to do. We finish what we started two years ago. And, we hire a new Tsviet while we're at it."

-----

Bernice shuffled out of the gym. Tifa had just called for the dismissal after training and even though she had trained with Tifa for two long years, Tifa's sessions proved as strenuous as ever.

All of a sudden, an ear splitting sound of the WRO headquarters sliced through the air. Bernice recovered from the shock when she felt her phone vibrate. She answered it and placed on left palm to her left ear to hear better. "Bernice, report to the meeting room as quickly as possible."

Before Bernice could answer back, Shelke had hung up. Bernice then heard Reeve's voice sound over the alarm but she couldn't make out the words. Bernice pocketed as she ran towards her destination.

She rounded the corner and at the end of the long hallway, she saw the door of the conference room.

The door slid aside and she entered to find Reeve, Cait Sith, Shelke, Cloud, Tifa, Cid already seated around a table. Vincent was, as usual, leaning against the wall in the corner of the room. "Bernice," Reeve acknowledged. "Take a seat."

Bernice took the chair closest to the door. Yuffie, Barret and Nanaki arrived a few moments later.

When everyone was seated, Shelke pressed a button on the edge of the steel table and a compartment in the center of the table opened. A tiny pedestal about a hand span of size extruded from the hole. On it was a sphere. The sphere was sky blue in color and little lights sparkled within it. _A materia?_

Bernice sat, mouth agape as a brilliant light erupted and a three dimensional map of Gaia appeared before them out spread on the table.

"Deep Ground has made their move. We have received intelligence that they plan on striking three key cities. Midgar, -" the map circled a point and zoomed in a second before zooming out again when Shelke continued. "-Wutai and Kalm."

Cloud, Tifa, Barret and Yuffie's faces ashened. Vincent's expression did not change but he did shift his weight uncomfortably.

Reeve then said, "Cloud, you, Tifa and Barret will be overseeing the squads in Midgar."

Cloud nodded.

"Yuffie, Red and Cid will take Wutai."

They all nodded.

"And finally, Shelke will accompany Vincent and Bernice to Kalm. The troops you're leading have already been assembled at the docks. The troops assigned for Midgar are in Dock One, and the troops going to Wutai and Kalm are in Dock Two and Three respectively. The missions for each squad will be relayed separately. Any questions?"

Seeing that there were none, Reeve continued, "Good, dismissed."

Before long, Bernice found herself sprinting along with Shelke towards Dock Three at Vincent's heel. "How are we getting to Kalm?" She asked Shelke.

"By airship," came the reply.

_Airship? _It was then that the thought struck her. It was the first time she was leaving the safety of the WRO headquarters. She was headed to the awful place where she had visited during the training simulation. Fleeting images of the terrible things floated through her mind, followed by a wave of fear. She promptly pushed those horrific thoughts aside. _Everyone's counting on me to play my part. I won't let them down._

In a matter of minutes, she and her two partners boarded their airship. The inside of the airship was a hive of activity. Technicians were busy, making preparations for their departure and ensuring that everything was functioning properly. Every now and then, the yelling of coordinates and engine statuses could be heard.

Bernice followed Vincent and Shelke to the deck. As they arrived, Vincent turned to his apprentice and said, "This is it, what you've been trained for. The Kalm we're going to now will be similar to the Kalm from our training simulation." He paused, taking a moment to survey her reaction. Her face was hardened with resolve. "From this point onwards, your priority is to stay alive, understand?"

"Yes, Vincent." She answered in a calm voice. _Don't worry. After the incident with that corpse, nothing is gonna faze me._

Shelke spoke, "It will be awhile before we get to Kalm. Why don't you two see to your weapons? The last thing you'd want to do is run out of shots."

Bernice nodded. She then made her way to the ship's armory.


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Fluffy white clouds drifted through the noon day sky, offering coolness from the blistering heat of the Gaian sun. A cool summer breeze sifted through the slums of Midgar. In the street corner, several urchins sat, huddled in a bunch, playing yet another game of their own making. As usual, the street vendors had finished setting up their stalls, and were noisily proclaiming their 'booties' in the hopes of attracting customers, hungry for lunch. The air was soon filled with the delicious fragrance of the myriad of food being sold. All in all, it was a perfect day in Midgar.

Two children, a boy and a girl, waved. Marlene and Denzel stood at the door of the Seventh Heaven Bar, bidding goodbye to the help barmaid, Celes. As they watched the blond girl rounding the corner, Denzel turned a sly gaze towards his younger companion.

"Tifa will be back in a few minutes, what do want to do?" he asked.

The little girl pressed a finger to her lips, considering Denzel's question, swaying from side to side as she did so. Her stomach growled. Promptly, the girl stopped her swaying and frowned. Normally, this sparse moment of freedom was their favorite time of day—no adults, no rules. However, a rumbling tummy would only serve to take the fun out of the activities they cooked up. _I'm hungry. _"We should just wait for her." She decided.

Just then, the phone upstairs rang. Both children ran inside and raced towards the phone. Denzel was first in reaching the upper landing. As he clasped his hand onto the phone, he triumphantly stuck his tongue out at her. "Hah, beat'cha again!" he shouted. Marlene crossed her arms and pouted. _Just you wait, Denzel..._

"Hello? Oh, hi Tifa. Oh… okay… no problem… okay… be back soon." He conversed, sounding slightly dejected. As Denzel put down the phone, he let out a sigh of frustration.

"What is it?" asked Marlene, concerned.

"Tifa says she and Cloud's got a last minute meeting. She will be back as soon as possible. She told us to lock the doors until she got here. I hope they get back soon, I'm hungry." He grumbled.

Marlene nodded in agreement before she turned and ran back to the doors. She reached up on slight tip-toes then turned the latch and, thereby locking it. "There, done." All of a sudden, something caught her eye. "Denzel, come look!"

Denzel strode to where Marlene stood, gazing outwards. Outside, the once lovely summer sky had suddenly turned angry. Fluffy white clouds were rapidly being replaced by thick, black smoke, casting Midgar into an artificial twilight. In the distance, sounds of people screaming, gun-fire and explosions could be heard. _Whatever's going on…it's getting closer!_ On the street, the citizens of Midgar had already entered into a panic frenzy. Urchins, street vendors and pedestrians alike had abandoned their activities and headed for shelter.

Marlene tugged at his arm, snapping him out of his perplexed state. With fear in her eyes, she frantically yelled, "Denzel, hidey-hole!" He nodded his affirmation and the two children made tore towards the back of the bar as a missile crashed into the building opposite the bar, sending charred timber, concrete, metal and glass flying in all directions. Stray rubble smashed the windows of Tifa's bar just as Denzel pulled opened the well-concealed trap door. He ushered Marlene into the dark underground hiding place before clambering down, pulling the trap door close behind him.

In the dark, the two children sat closely, pulling their knees close to their chins. The 'Hidey-hole' had been built by Cloud, at Tifa's insistence two years ago as they would be spending more time at the WRO headquarters. It was a small underground room, only large enough to accommodate four grown men. The room was reinforced (again, at Tifa's insistence) by cover and shield materias. In addition to being a good hiding spot for the children in times of crisis, it provided a good storage area for their materia. Today, it provided a safe-haven for the two children while whatever battles raged on outside.

Beyond their small enclosure, sounds of explosions and the whirling of missiles shook the ground. Marlene stifled her scream and threw her arms around Denzel. She clung to him, trembling. Screams of agony from nearby brought silent tears to her eyes. She could feel Denzel's shallow breath and hear his rapid heartbeat as she clung tightly to his chest, seeking what little comfort he could offer. He responded by patting her gently on her back. "Cloud and Tifa will come soon, then everything will be alright again, okay?" he whispered. She nodded.

With a resounding crash, the floor above them shook, startling the scared children. When he had mustered the courage to do so, Denzel got up and made his way cautiously towards the entrance of their hiding place. He gave the trapdoor a shove. It was stuck tight. He cursed under his breath, and looked at Marlene. The fear in her eyes was painfully obvious in the dim materia-light. He walked over to her and kneeled down beside her. Again he whispered, "Looks like we're stuck down here for a while."

"At least we'll be safe from the bad people here." She commented, feigning a smile.

It was then that the chill had come, silencing the duo. Black swirling aura oozed through the unseen gaps around the trap door. The two children edged backwards, towards the shelf filled with materia. For a moment, the darkness flowed unimpeded towards them, threatening to smoother them.

Suddenly, a blinding flash erupted from behind and a myriad of colors filled the room. Darkness retreated…the air became warm once more.

-----------

Cloud swung his leg over the seat and got on Fenrir.

"Lieutenant," Cloud said suddenly.

A WRO soldier named Jack came over to stand next to Cloud. "Commander?" asked the young operative.

"Take out every enemy in sight. Focus on this side of the city, don't advance until either told to or first informing me or the other commanders."

"Order acknowledged, sir." He turned to leave.

"Oh, and one more thing lieutenant."

The youth tuned abruptly and said, "Sir?"

"You have been to Midgar before, I'm guessing?" Cloud showed no apparent expressions.

"Yes, sir," said Jack, not knowing where exactly this conversation was leading to.

"Good, then you know of the Seventh Heaven Bar?"

"Of course, sir." There is no one that has been to Midgar who wouldn't know of the Seventh Heaven Bar.

Cloud nodded. "I want you to take half a dozen men and follow me there. There are two civilians that I want removed from there and brought to the WRO headquarters as fast as possible.

"Yes, sir." Then, he left and relayed the orders.

Just then, the speakers crackled and a voice said. "Ready, Commander Strife?"

Cloud fixed on and adjusted his goggles and then started the engine. Fenrir immediately came alive.

"Ready."

"Drop One, Mission Midgar, drop at will."

A low rumbling sound could be heard as the back of the airship seemed to tear open, reviling a doorway.

Cloud sped down the long ramp, his company of thirty-five WRO soldiers only step behind him.

The airship was flying lower than usual. Fenrir landed firmly on the ground on the outskirts of Midgar and raced in the direction of the city. It wasn't long before they had to start dodging bullets and homing missiles.

Cloud instinctively retrieved a buster sword from Fenrir's sword release and risked a glance backwards. Tifa's team had just only cleared the runway and was rushing towards them, leaving a steady stream of dust in their wake.

He returned his attention to the bloody work ahead of him, and only narrowly evaded anther missile that headed for him. He knew that if Tifa had seen that stunt, he'd probably get a real tongue-lashing later.

They entered the city and Cloud's team split into two forces. The team with the better number jumped off their boards, guns at the ready and started dispatching the enemy to the Lifestream.

Cloud looked over his shoulder to make sure everything was going as planned. They were, but he noticed that only five soldiers excluding the lieutenant were still on their boards. The lieutenant came to travel beside him. Without taking his eyes off the scene before him, Cloud asked, "Lieutenant, there must be something wrong with your calculations, half a dozen is six. Six, not including you."

The lieutenant turned to Cloud. "There were six." His voice was wavering slightly.

Taking out another DG soldier, Cloud said, "Look again, lieutenant."

Just then, the seven men rounded the corner to the Seventh Heaven Bar. Cloud's bike came swirling to a stop. He slid off though his team got off their hover boards much as how a skateboarder would.

Before Cloud could say or do anything, he saw the lieutenant facing the five men which accompanied him and Cloud. "Where's Private Robbie?" he demanded. His question was greeted by shrugs. Nearby, bullets, missiles and blood continued to rain. However, it was a relief that the area around the Seventh Heaven was clear, and relatively safe (well, safer anyways.).

Several, lifeless bodies dotted the streets. Some of which, lay reclined beside the numerous plies of rubbles. _"There are no fires here,"_ Cloud noted to himself. Instead, they would see the occasional pocket of black aura. The thought of what that meant worried him. He frowned and told his team to move faster. _Marlene and Denzel will be fine…please let them be alright…_he prayed silently.

Cloud's team came to an abrupt stop in front of the Seventh Heaven._ Or rather, what's left of it…_the Lieutenant thought miserably. There was no way anyone could still be alive in there. The front of the building had been reduced to an enormous pile of rubble. Here and there, metal which had once held up the structure jutted out amongst the concrete.

Without a word, Cloud got of his bike and made his way to where bar used to be. He surveyed the area, as if trying to find something. The lieutenant sighed. He decided that it would be better to allow their commander several moments to himself before enquiring their next itinerary. _Whoever we came to rescue must have meant a lot to him for him to tend to this mission personally._ Usually, the commanders left the infantry to deal with the tedious work which rescue missions represented.

Just then, Cloud seemed to have found what he was looking for. From his spot, he took several paces to the left, counting and measuring his footsteps as he did so. When he had reached his desired location, he stomped on the rubble several times. He frowned slightly. The pile was thick and they would not have the time to remove everything out of the way, piece by piece.

He held out his sword and after invoking the power of the thunder materia which he had placed in his sword's materia slot earlier on. The blade crackled with electricity. He then leaped into the air, and upon aiming for the rubble below, he swung it round, releasing the bolt of lightning.

The Lieutenant and his men gasped in shock. A gapping crater had appeared in the ground where the bolt of lightning had struck.

He landed with a soft thud beside the crater. Cloud kneeled and brushed the dust off the bottom of the cavity. Feeling around, he finally found it, a small indent in the hard wood floor. He gave it an almighty tug. The trap door swung open. From below, shrieks of a little girl could be heard. "Denzel! Marlene! It's me. I'm here now." Cloud's voice held a faint implication of relief, and even joy. He reached in and pulled the two children out one by one.

"Cloud, w-what took you s-so long?" Marlene asked, tears flowing freely down her cheeks.

"I knew you'd come." Denzel muttered, his face was solemn.

Cloud said nothing. He pulled them in a tight embrace, silently thanking the heavens that the two were safe and unharmed. "It's alright, I'm here now…" He said "…the men will take you to safety."

"Where's Tifa?" Marlene asked.

"She's somewhere around here."

"Can we talk to her?" The children asked in unison.

Cloud shook his head. "It's too dangerous here. Don't worry, we'll be together again soon." He added the last with a smile.

He turned to the men. "Lieutenant, you and your men take these two to back to the airship. Then, have the pilot set a course for headquarters. Don't stop for anything."

"Sir!"

He watched them speed off into the distance. Then, he took out his phone and dialed.

"Cloud?" Tifa's worried voice sounded in his ear.

"They're safe and on their way back to headquarters."

A sigh of relief could be heard.

"Where are you?"

"Barret and I are in sector 3." Tifa sounded much calmer now. He could hear gun-fire and explosions in the background. Occasionally, he could hear howls and yelps as well as screams.

"I'm on my way." Cloud said.

"Alright…what is…BARRET...wha…aahh!" Tifa's voice had turned from unruffled to fearful. And then, there was nothing.

"Tifa? Tifa!" Cloud shouted into the phone. Still nothing. He flipped it close and pocketed it.

Fenrir roared to life. Dust bellowed as Cloud sped off.

--------

Something was not right. Sector 3 was quiet, too quiet… his eyes widened in shock. He was sure that he'd heard the sounds of battle over the phone. However, the scene before him was as silent as night. It was similar to the area around the Seventh Heaven.

The silence unnerved him. Besides that, where was Tifa and Barret!

Soft laughter issued behind him, causing him to turn around. "Nice of you to join us."

"You!" The word had barely left his mouth. The air around him was suddenly cold. Darkness overwhelmed him, and he knew no more.

----------------

_**Author's note:**_

_**Sorry, everyone for the delay in update. This chapter was a toughie, but I'm quite pleased with the way it turned out. Also, I have gained a new respect for the battle and event planners at Square Enix tips hat.**_

_**Thank you FuchiaFinn and BeckyLynn for your reviews! **_

_**By the way, the one-winged fellow in the last chapter isn't Sephiroth. And if anyone's wondering why I brought back everyone but Azul, well, it's because Chaos stuck a big gun in him. apologizes to all Azul fans**_

_**I hope you enjoy reading this new chapter. PLEASE REVIEW…and stay tunned. We'll be checking in on Kalm next.**_


	16. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Bernice stared at the two luminescent orbs cupped in her palms. They had been placed, almost reverently into in hands just moments ago.

-------------

_(Flashback)_

In the weaponry, Bernice tended to her gun-blade, furiously cleaning the various parts and sharpening the blade. Everything had to be perfect, clean and in working condition. She was heading into her first real mission and any flaws in her weapon could result in dire consequences. "No mistakes, no hesitation,"she murmured the line Vincent constantly reminded her of.

'_Click'_, a thunder materia slides into the materia slot.

Footsteps approach. Bernice shifted her concentration to her approaching comrade.

"Shelke, I'm just about finished. Is it time?"

The girl in her DG battle suit shook her head. "I wanted to give you these." She held out her hand, revealing a pair of materia.

Bernice stood, slightly abashed at the unexpected gesture.

Shelke continued, "Mastered materia, fire and blizzard."

She didn't know what to say. Materia were as dangerous as they were valuable. Ordinary elemental materias (the only kind she had been permitted to have) could unleash substantial power, the power a mastered materia could exert would be tremendous. And she, a humble apprentice who'd only been exposed to merely two years of training, was to be entrusted with them?!

"Thank you." She uttered, when she had found her voice.

Shelke nodded, smiling.

The materias are placed into her hands.

"Vincent and I will meet you in the stern in five. You know what to do after the drop, right?"

"Yeah. Team 3, to rendezvous with Team 1 and 2 in front of the church."

Shelke departed.

_(Flashback ends)_

_--------_------

The magic of the materias made her palm tingle. Their power was eminent, making the thunder materia she had equipped earlier seem…insignificant.

Hastily, the thunder materia is replaced into a materia-chain hanging from the gun-blade's hilt. The well-hidden materia slots are now adorned by fire and ice.

With her gun-blade holstered and healing aids accounted for, Bernice strides out to take her place amongst her team mates, awaiting deployment.

-------------

"Lieutenant," Bernice shouted, the roar of the engine drowning her voice.

"Ma'am," The young lieutenant responded in a half-shout.

"Have the men maintain 'V-formation'. Stay close till we reach the rendezvous point, then move as units of six afterwards."

"Will do, ma'am! Is there anything else?"

She hesitated, and then said, "Tell them to be careful."

He nodded in affirmation. Her orders are then relayed to the remaining troopers. Bernice would be leading a team of one dozen, excluding herself.

Once his orders were completed, the lieutenant cast a glance at his commander. The young man had been dubious when he was informed that he and his men would be led by a rookie gun-blader with no experience in the battlefield. However, when he had met her, he found that Bernice proved to have a flare in leadership (even if she was still a little 'wet behind the ears'). He was also surprised to find that she had a reasonable, albeit still lacking, proficiency in battle tactics._ If nothing else, at least she's confident._ He mused

Bernice cracked a slight smile when she noticed the lieutenant looking at her. Being entrusted with the lives of a dozen men had been nothing short of scary. Still, from the moment she arose to the task, she had committed herself to being the best leader that she could be. Confidence on her part, or even pretence of confidence, would be essential in upholding the team's morale. Also, she took care to play an active, though not overly-so, part in setting their tactics. During which she was thankful for all the time she'd spent acquiring a wealth of knowledge regarding battle tactics and strategies whilst conversing with her mentors and the soldiers at the WRO headquarters. _I just hope I didn't sound too incompetent. _She sighed. _Oh well, too late to turn back now._

Four minutes till deployment. All three teams were already strapped unto the newest models of WRO hover boards, anxiously awaiting for the drop off to commence.

---------------

A deafening alarm sounded as the hatch was opened. The speakers boomed, "Team 1, drop at will."

Shelke's team zoomed off the runway, followed shortly by Vincent's team as soon as the signal was given.

Bernice braced herself as the speakers boomed, "Team 3, drop at will." She accelerated, the thrill was exhilarating. Soon, she was cascading towards the chaotic scene, with her team at her heels, gun-blade in hand, poised to strike.

All around them, the battalion of airship was sending a hail of missiles towards the DG troops which were steadily demolishing the city. Below, both Vincent and Shelke could be seen leading their teams enroute to the rendezvous point.

Several swift aerial maneuvers and close calls found Bernice and her team out of the cross-fire and amongst enemy troops. Her bullets found their mark on far-away targets while white metal brought down many an unlucky trooper who strayed too close to her path. Occasionally, she would swerve, dip or climb in order to avoid an obstacle as she performed the dance of death atop her mobile hover board.

---------------

Miraculously, they arrive unscathed. The square in front of the church seemed like an island of calm amidst a sea of chaos. Here, the terrible sounds of war sounded distant, almost fictitious.

Vincent and Shelke were already on foot, and were waiting for her. Their teams had initiated the sweep of Kalm, taking down the DG as well as evacuating civilians.

She and her team disembarked, and sent their boards on auto-pilot back to the headquarters. "Team 3, move out!" she barked.

"Ma'am!" the men cried in unison before splitting forces and heading off in a north-easterly direction.

She turned towards her friends, who exchange amused looks.

"What?" she asked, still feeling slightly flustered after the wild ride.

Before anyone could answer, there was a resounding 'Crash!' as half a dozen revolutionized DG guard hounds, each the size of heavily built Great Danes, leap out of the church, reducing the doors of the latter to splinters in the process.

The trio abruptly turned to face their foes.

--------------

Back at the WRO headquarters, Reeve Tuesti was busy coordinating the command centre executives as they relayed orders to the individual squads when an officer approached him.

"Commissioner, a call from Wutai."

"I'll take it in my office. Have it on visual."

"Sir!"

Reeve entered his private room and turned on the big screen mounted on the wall behind his desk. The fuzzy image gradually cleared to reveal a certain perky ninja. Although there were no explosions or gun-fire to be heard, the commissioner noted sadly, flaming wreckage in the background which had once been a beautiful Wutaian bungalow. Smoke billowed from somewhere off-screen.

"Reeve, DG has sounded the retreat here in Wutai. We have the situation under control and the troops are tending to the injured and the…er…fallen." The last was uttered with a hint of sorrow.

"Excellent, we'll send the medic team."

"Great, how are the others holding up?" asked the ninja, sounding suddenly concerned.

"Vincent, Shelke and Bernice have just arrived in Kalm." Reeve replied.

"And, Cloud and the gang?"

Reeve sighed, "We lost contact with them not too long ago."

"What?" Yuffie shouted.

But before he could answer, an unfamiliar voice, female and with a Russian accent, could be heard. "So, we meet again, Wutai flea." There was a bout of cold laughter.

"You! You're that…" Yuffie started to say.

From somewhere off-screen, a steady stream of Cid's colorful vocabulary, accompanied by Nanaki's growls could be heard.

A hail of gun-fire.

A splash of blood on the screen.

The perspective veers upwards, towards a sky, tainted with ashes.

A bullet pierces the camera's lens.

And then, the buzz of static. The screen blurred with fuzzy streaks of white, gray and black.

"Yuffie!" the Commissioner had yelled.

He sighed in resignation. It was no use. Now, he'd lost contact with Wutai as well. Clearly, he had somehow underestimated the enemy. He only hoped that the trio in Kalm was alright.

---------------------

Unfortunately, not everything, in fact, hardly anything, ever happens the way we want them to. The moment those hounds attacked, bullets began raining. However, it wasn't long before the gun-slingers founds that it was to no avail.

The bullets did not slow their advancement. In fact, the fanged monstrosities hadn't even flinched when shot at.

Shelke charged forward, EM sabers at the ready. Vincent followed suit, with his golden claw bared.

A hound pounced. Bernice spun, effectively catching the beast's teeth with her blade. She jerked her gun-arm, throwing the hound backwards by several yards. As it got up, Bernice charged and delivered a stream of swings and backhands.

She scowled in frustration. _How thick is this hide?!_ Although the hound faltered each time she swung her gun-blade, the hits drew no blood, only a stubborn 'Thwack'.

She risked a glance at her two comrades. None of them had any more luck than she did, although Shelke's EM sabers managed to char their fur.

Before her, the hound reared. Instinctively, she brought the blade upwards. The swung proved true, resulting in a sickening 'Schrok' (ssh-crok).

Its limp body fell to the ground, dead.

"Vincent, Shelke, their throats!" she yelled as she engaged another hound.

The battle became much easier after that. And soon, all the hounds lay dead in their own crimson pools.

---------------

They proceeded through the city, checking all the nooks and crannies for survivors and dispatching any foe they met to the Lifestream, just as Bernice and Vincent had done during their simulation.

The magic of elemental materia proved just as effective against hounds as slitting their throats. The gang used those sparingly however, for fear of running out of magic. Bernice had avoided using any of the mastered materia, partially because she wanted to take the opportunity to make her thunder materia grow.

"Is it just me, or are these things harder to kill than before?" she voiced in frustration after yet another ambush by a DG squad.

She wiped the blade clean on the uniform of the DG trooper she had just killed.

"It would seem that they have enhanced the physiology of the troops." Shelke replied nonchalantly.

Vincent kept his silence, as usual. He leaned against the side of the alley and drained a bottle of elixir.

"Very perceptive of you, Shelke." A familiar voice sounded.

All three shot to their attack stances. Muscles twitched, as if aching to spring.

"Tisk, tisk, Bernice. We never meant you any harm, you know? I only came to offer my services as an instructor…"

Footsteps, heavy and deliberate, echoed through the alleyway.

None of them moved or spoke. They were fixated on trying to discern the source of the footsteps, the whereabouts of their foe. Smoke and ash clouded their eyes, making them water. This made things complicated as they had to rely on hearing and sense of vibrations to find _him_—which was terribly difficult as everything seemed to echo and vibrate in that alley.

A small object fell from above. A clang of metal upon tar-road could be heard.

White smoke erupted from the metallic canister. The air was suddenly heavy with the smell of alcohol.

"Don't breath!" Vincent had cried.

It was too late. Bernice heard her two friends falter and drop to the ground, before she too, fell unto her knees, senses dulled by the gas.

With her head spinning, she just managed to catch a glimpse of the lower torso of a man approaching. He wore a pair of white pants. His black boots were worn high, up to his knees…

She slumped to the ground, unconscious.

-----------------------

She woke up in a bed. The room was dark, save for the scant light filtering from a nearby window. From that, she could discern that several hours had passed since the incident in the alley.

Her head swam. The effects of the alcohol-based seeping gas lingered still.

She moaned as she tried to get up. Her hands flew to her head, as pain and dizziness rang through her cranium.

The pain subsided. Her head now felt like lead. She forced herself up gingerly. A hand upon the bed head steadied her torso as it swayed on the spot. It was then that she remembered…

"Vincent! Shelke!" she half-shouted. She broke into a run, only to have another wave of pain and dizziness reverberate through her head. She fell to her knees, hands clutching the sides of her head, moaning.

"Hangovers…quite unsettling the first time round, aren't they?" The voice, though not entirely unpleasant, was cold. The man from the alley strode out of the shadows.

She shuddered at the words. Her hand abruptly went to her holster, only to find it missing. She cursed under her breath.

"Don't worry, your things are on the table, _ALL_ of it."

Weiss handed her a vial. "Drink!" He commanded. "Our leader will not tolerate a drunken girl in his presence."

She turned away, and said in a somewhat slurred voice, "Yeah, he'd probably prefer his captives dead."

He let the comment slide. He'd been given explicit orders _not _to harm her. He tried again in a more gentle tone. "Drink it." He coaxed. "It will make you feel better."

Seeing that she hadn't a choice, she accepted the vial. She braced herself for the worst, and then took the draught. It was bitter and spicy.

Her head cleared instantaneously. She sighed in relief and stood up.

She fixed Weiss in a cold, hard stare. "Where are my friends?"

He looked slightly bemused by the question. "All in good time," he said maliciously. He continued in a more commanding tone. "But first, our leader will see you at his quarters."

"What does he want with me?"

"To bargain, I suppose." He replied casually.

"What on earth could possess him to think that I would agree to anything he has to 'bargain'?" She retorted angrily.

In a dangerous voice, he answered, "Oh, I think you'll find him to be quite persuasive. Besides, I'm sure it's an offer you _couldn't_ refuse." He paused, giving the last some time to sink in.

She remembered her friends. She feared the worst, but refused to let it show. She continued to glare at him.

He continued, "Get your things. _He_ doesn't like waiting."

She did as she was told (and was surprised and _extremely_ relieved to find that all her things were, in fact accounted for).

Before marching her to the said location, his hands contacted his twin gun-blades, indicating that any attempt to escape would be futile.

--------------------

_Author's note:_

_Yayness, it's still Vincent's Birthday (In some parts of the world anyway)! Happy Birthday, Vincent! ...I guess. (give me a break, this chapter is 8 pages long, not including this ac)_

_The exams are finally over, and I was (also finally) able to continue the story. I feel kinda sorry that I have to put him through this on his birthday, though…oh well, least I moved the torture part till next chapter. _

_Also, I'm happy to announce that I now have 1282 hits (thank you! I touches me deeply that so many made the time to read) and…um…4 reviews (also, a big thank you). Hm…is it just me or is something just not adding up?! nudge, nudge_

_Eh, does anyone know the name of that 'G' guy in Dirge? I'm not certain. Is it Gackt or Genesis?_

_Oh, and I know I've mixed up some of the tenses in this chapter (sorry, I couldn't help it). And since I haven't played ff7 (amazing, I know), I have no idea what Wutai looks like (feel free to enlighten me). One more thing, does anyone besides me feel that this story lacks…emotion? If so, please give me some pointers as to how I can write more…er…emotionally._

_Once again, THANK YOU, readers, for staying with me thus far. I won't disappoint you._

_**Valentinemenitis**._


	17. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Vincent felt the icy heat surge quickly through his body. The electricity cut itself like a knife through his torso, sending his muscles into a fit of agony. He screwed his eyes shut and forced back a cry of pain.

The pain which had lasted but a moment, had felt like an eternity, before it stopped. Vincent let his body slump heavily, he was held up only by the chains on his writs.

He reluctantly lifted his agonizing head to see the others in similar positions. Hanging by chains and being tortured like he. Perspiration ran down their pale faces as they fought to stay conscious. Nanaki was closed inside a tight cage that didn't even provide enough space for him to turn. He lay on the floor of his prison, strength-less.

He dropped his head again. By now, he should have thought of an escape plan, but his wits were too dull to cooperate. It was his fault that they were here. If he had finished his mission properly, none of them would have had to endure this. Just then, another jolt poured into his senses. He heard somebody nearby, Tifa or Yuffie or Shelke, he couldn't tell, let out a gasp of pain. His body tensed, all the cells in his body screamed and begged for the throbbing to stop.

Then, he heard somebody calling their names worriedly. This was followed by a series of malevolent laughter. The pain ceased and he strained to open his eyes but they wouldn't comply. Though he couldn't see the caller, he had already identified her.

After the pain had subsided a bit, with great effort, he opened his eyes. Bernice struggled to release herself from Weiss's grip. From the look of the situation, Vincent figured that she had probably tried to run towards their limp bodies when she entered the room.

As far as Vincent could tell, they were in Deepground. In the same room where Vincent and Yuffie first saw Weiss, though the person that sat on throne was a person whom he had never seen before.

* * *

Bernice had been ushered into a room lit by mako. Though she knew that anything in that room would be to her dislike, however, nothing could prepare her for what she met her eyes. 

Cloud and her other friends were chained to the high ceiling by their wrists. And judging by the way they looked, they had definitely been through some sort of torture. _I don't think I've _ever _seen anyone so worse for wear…_

"TIFA! VINCENT!"

They laughed at her. Their laughter was filled with spite and mockery.

She eyed the other three hateful people present. A woman with long red hair, a figure with metal wings and a man who sat on a throne on the dais.

Discreetly, she expanded her vision throughout the entire room. This was something her tutors had always emphasized during her training: _Always pay attention to your surroundings._ The door she and Weiss had entered from was the only exit from this dimly lit room. By the wall to her right, a table stood, adorned by all her friends' weapons. The walls, floor and ceiling seemed to be made from the same material.

The man on the throne spoke with a voice that sent chills down her spine. "Ah, Bernice, how nice of you to join us?"

Anger overcame fear as she replied in a cold voice. "Well, I didn't have much of a choice, did I?"

He gave a throaty chuckle. "Fire, I admire that." He paused, as if savoring the heated reply and then continued in mock humility. "Where are my manners? Introductions: I'm sure that you've met Weiss. This is Rosso and Nero, and I am Genesis." He considered the young woman before him and said, "I have a proposal, Bernice Talwin"

It hit Bernice like a rock. "How did you-"

"Know your last name?" Genesis finished for her. Even when you have never mentioned it before in this world, even to your tutors? Rather simple actually, you see, before I changed my name to Genesis, I was known to all as Charles Talwin."

Bernice's eyes widened instantly. "My- my father?"

"What?" said Cloud and some of the others. Weiss and the Tsviets looked equally astonished, indicating that Genesis didn't hold this topic for discussion before.

"It can't be, my parents are dead."

"Well, as you can see, I am not. Though for your mother, it was a different story. But that is all in the past. Join me in me reign over the world."

"Never! Father or not, I won't."

Genesis's eyes narrowed. "I thought that that would be the case. Very well, it is your decision, but I do fear for your friends' fate."

He inclined his head. Again, electricity surged through the chains. She watched, horrified, as her friends' bodied strain against their bondage.

"No! Let them go! There is nothing that they have that you want."

"Not true," Genesis said in a contrary tone. "They have your friendship. Join me and I'll let them go if that is your wish. Defy me and they will all die."

Bernice bit her lower lip. She did not trust herself to talk right now.

"This is your destiny."

The words never really reached Bernice. She was too caught up in thought. To give in was an unthinkable thought, but if she were to refuse, her friends would pay the price. It was a hopeless situation. Only one option left.

Bernice sighed inwardly. She drew her gun-blade. She took a step forward, then another, then another until she was before him.

Bernice felt more than saw everyone in the room tense. A mixture of fear and worried looks appeared on her friends' faces, especially her tutors'. Though Vincent only placed a stern stare on her.

Weiss unsheathed his twin gun-blades, Rosso readied herself and Nero stretched open his metal wings. Genesis stood up with his hand lightly resting on the hilt of his katana.

Bernice knew that even though Vincent seemed stoic and very much subdued, he was probably praying silently in his heart that whatever she planned to do, it would not be anything stupid. Yup, she could imagine it now. Vincent, probably accompanied by Cloud and Tifa, criticizing her stupid actions…if they survived through this.

Bernice dug the tip of her gun-blade into the ground _hard _and knelt on one knee in one swift movement. The ancients' sign of pledging loyalty.

Genesis took no pains to hide his satisfaction. "Wise choice, daughter."

"NO!" shouted Cloud as he and some others struggled against his restraints. Vincent didn't shout nor struggle, but his shoulders visibly slacked. Not wishing to see anymore, he tore his eyes away from the scene.

Genesis turned his gaze over to the seven chained heroes. "Cloud, Tifa, Vincent, I want to thank you for saving me the effort in training her. Now, say goodbye to your apprentice," Genesis said with a smirk that Tifa just HAD to wipe off.

Startled by his words, Bernice looked up as Genesis put his right hand on her head and acid green light bathed her. A gasp of pain escaped her lips as she was glued into the position she was in. She gritted her teeth as pain continued to flow down from his hand to her body.

Bernice bit back a second gasp when Genesis abruptly lifted his hand.

* * *

Cloud saw Bernice stagger to her feet. She appeared to be unharmed but Cloud knew better than to think so. Bernice held both hands at her temples and shut her eyes tight as if having a headache. A few moans could be heard.

Suddenly, the pain seemed to be lifted. She slowly lowered her hands to her side and turned to face them. Cloud and the others gasped when their eyes met her. They were stone cold and void of emotion. It was as if the light of life had gone out.

With hatred written on her face, Yuffie exclaimed, "You'll never get away with this, you meannies!"

"I'm almost sorry to say, that I haven't really gotten away with this event yet. See, as long as the Heroes of Gaia still live, there really is no reason to celebrate."

"So what do you plan to do with us, son of a ? Gonna slit our ing throats while we're ing tied up?" Cid shouted angrily at Genesis.

Genesis's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Actually, you have _no _idea how tempted I am to do that, especially Valentine here, destroying full armies two years ago. Every second you all live, you stand a chance of defeating me. No, slitting throats is just a little _too _merciful for my taste and I think I'll let someone else have the honor in killing you seven."

Vincent averted his eyes towards Weiss and the others. "Relax, Valentine, it isn't any of the old Tsviets," said Weiss, his voice showed disappointment.

"Then, who-" Cloud didn't finish the sentence. He had already answered it himself.

"That's right, Cloud," Genesis said, his trademark smirk back in place. He gestured with his hand. "Bernice, won't you be a dear and walk over to that table where their weapons are and turn those rats into hanging corpses." "Take as long as you like." He added with a hint of glee.

Bernice started to cross the room to where a table was rising from the ground. Bernice picked up Yuffie's shuriken. "Don't do it, Bernice!"

Everyone turned at the sudden sound. "Don't do it!" Tifa repeated.

Genesis started to say something but was interrupted by Bernice. "Shut up, Lockheart." Tifa seemed to be a little taken aback at this.

Bernice put down the shuriken and reached for the Cerberus. She twirled Vincent's gun around a few times, then when she was satisfied, she held it in her left hand and took out her gun-blade. She advanced on her friends.

_Great, just great. Isn't THIS ironic? I'm gonna be killed someone I trained! And if that isn't enough, she's gonna kill me with my own gun! This is HELL Ironic. _Vincent had thought miserably. He then noticed Bernice doing something peculiar. It might not have proved any difference, but it was odd…

All of a sudden, Bernice stopped several feet away from the captives. "Fight it, Bernice, don't let him control you!" Tifa had not yet given up on her.

Bernice leveled her gun-blade at them, then, pulled back the trigger. A flash of white light erupted from its tip and hit the ceiling above them, its ice spreading fast, engulfing all seven chains. The seven people all averted their gaze and shut their eyes as if expecting the ice to swallow them whole. "I said shut up, Lockheart."

Even as the freezing spell worked its way through their bondages, three things occurred simultaneously. One, Bernice had sprung towards the wall on the far left. And two, as her feet came in contact with the wall, she threw her gun-blade at the opposite wall. It dug deep into the metallic surface with a satisfying 'Thwok', but not without shattering the eight now-brittle chains in the process. Three, as Bernice kicked-off from the wall, she twisted her body so that she faced Genesis and Tsviets. Immediately, Cerberus flew to her right hand. She cast flare in their direction, followed by a hail of bullets.

Another summersault and she landed squarely in front of her friends.

The restraints came lose and all seven friends landed lightly on the floor below them. Nanaki's cage, however, had crashed onto the ground, thus requiring him to pick himself up from under the undignified heap of iron. Vincent, who had been the closest to the wall, had kindly retrieved Bernice's gun-blade on his way down.

Vincent and the others rushed forward while they saw that Bernice hadn't stopped far from her targets at all.

Bernice had managed to get a few bullets into both Rosso and Nero before they started dodging. "What?" screamed Genesis, sounding thoroughly outraged.

Nearby, he heard Bernice shout in reply, "Sorry, pops, world domination just ain't my thing!"

Bernice heard laughter and turned to see all of the friends armed and ready. With a curt signal from Vincent, weapons were exchanged and Bernice found herself holding her gun-blade once more. A glance at her mentor told her he was glad to have his gun back. She giggled inwardly at that.

Putting a reassuring hand on Bernice's shoulder, Cloud said, "We'll have a chat later, but right now, what do you say if we just get out of here first?"

Bernice nodded and leveled her gun-blade. Genesis and the others readied their weapons to deflect the bullets, but they never came. Instead, a gigantic fireball erupted from the tip of her gun-blade and the room exploded in flames.

A sudden gust of wind chased the smoke off and the room was empty save Genesis and his remaining Tsviets.

* * *

Whatever happened after that was a blur to Bernice. Though she vaguely remembered brief battles, a long, hasty trek through some ruins, a sewer at some point, a phone call and somehow the group ended up in the lobby of the WRO headquarters. Reeve and Cait Sith had come to greet them. Then, the commissioner had taken Cloud aside to hear what had happened during the mission.

Safe at headquarters, Bernice could just imagine the fits of rage her _father_ was likely to be throwing, with only sheer exhaustion keeping her from laughing.

She felt a playful punch on her shoulder. "Shut up, Tifa?!" The brunette said in mock anger.

"Uh…sorry about that. I had to make it look convincing." Bernice responded, grinning sheepishly.

Just then, Yuffie gave her a hard slap on the back. "You were awesome, kid!"

"Not half bad." Cid and Barret sounded their agreement.

"Thanks." She replied. She felt embarrassed all of a sudden.

She glanced at Shelke and Nanaki, who nodded and smiled.

Before long, the commotion subsided. Yuffie, Barret, Cid, Nanaki and Shelke had decided to call it a night.

Tifa sighed and furrowed her brow before asking, "Are you alright? I mean…Genesis…"

"I understand. And yes, I'm fine. I'm just glad that everyone made it out okay." She paused and considered the doubt on Tifa's face. Bernice forced a smile and said, "Tifa, any man can be a father, but it takes more than the contribution of sperm and a name to make one a parent. You guys, and the WRO, are my family now. Nothing would ever change that."

Tifa smiled at that. It was grand to officially have a new member to their band…even though it would never replace the _initial loss_. Throughout the conversation, the figure leaning against the pillar watched and listened in silence with his own ghost of a smile carefully hidden behind his cowl.

* * *

_Author's note:_

_Right, so that's chapter 16. The confrontation part was rather brief, so if you think there is a need for me to fill in any gaps, don't hesitate to point it out to me. (I don't bite) I've split this chp, btw._

_As you probably guessed, Bernice had planned the whole escape since she kneeled before Genesis and 'initial loss' refers to Aerith._

_Also, we are nearing the end of the story. I think I might write a sequel…provided I get a decent amount of reviews on this story of course..._

_So, see that 'Go' button next to 'submit review'? Go on, press it!_

_Val. _


	18. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Cloud had returned. With a solemn expression, he asked, "So, Bernice, care to explain yourself?"

The question, cupped by his somberness, puzzled her.

"What he means," Tifa interjected. "Is what happened between you and Genesis back there? You know, the whole hand over your head, then gasps of pain uh…thingy."

"Oh, that." She had been expecting that question. "Well, I think he tried to control my body by attacking my mind."

"And it didn't work because…" Cloud threw her a skeptical look.

She smiled slyly and said, "He can't control something that isn't where it's supposed to be, now can he?" She paused for effect, and then continued matter-of-factly, "It's a form of meditation that I learnt from my step-parents—both were obsessed with spiritual stuff, like Yoga and such. After a few years of practicing it, I was finally able to temporarily detach my mind from my body, so to speak, at will." Bernice's face took on a far-off expression, as if recalling some long-forgotten memory. "I used to have a 'temper-problem', back when I was a kid. This helped me to stay calm and 'out of trouble'." She sighed, "Anyway, the point is that I was able to deflect his control over me. And since I displaced his spell instead of resisting it, he had no way to find out that he had failed."

"I'm still a little confused about that last part," said Tifa.

Bernice looked thoughtful for a moment, then replied, "Think of it this way: It's like fighting with water. Sometimes, subtle ways are better than an all out resistance. It hurts more if you try to punch water or hit it hard, but if you go about it gently, you'll find that you can achieve the same results minus the pain."

Cloud said, "But I saw your eyes, it was like they'd become stone cold or something."

The gun-blader replied with a chuckle, "I was only trying to imitate Vincent. I hoped that the stoicism would fool Genesis into thinking that he really got to me. Apparently, I'm a good actress."

Vincent gave a terse 'A-hem' in mock annoyance and Bernice flashed him an apologetic smile. Her two other tutors laughed.

Cloud said, "Alright, it's late. Time to turn in, everyone. We are going to have a meeting tomorrow to discuss how we can best deal with our new threat."

With that, they went their separate ways.

* * *

Bernice was deep in thought, and was subconsciously letting her body take her to her quarters. She stopped at her doorway. _Everyone's safe…for now. _She sighed inwardly as she recalled her last two years on Gaia. Her mind then shifted to the values and principles she had learnt as a child, and then to the situation she was facing now. 

She struck the door in frustration. Startled by the involuntary manifestation of her own emotions, she looked down the corridor in both directions. Seeing that no one had seen what she had done, she turned and left.

* * *

The shooting range was quiet. As always, most of the room was lit by blue-tinted fluorescent. Making it easier to see the targets at the other end, which were illuminated in white light. 

She took out her gun-blade and began cleaning it. After that, she fired a few rounds on the nearest target. Then, with her back still turned to the shadows, she said, "Don't you ever get tired of watching me?"

Vincent strode out of the shadows, with his faint smile well-hidden behind his cowl. Once again, his apprentice had managed to surprise him. _Twice in one day…I must be losing my touch._

"Ever since that first lesson, you've hardly ever let my out of your line of sight." The young woman commented.

"…well, it's the least I could do." He replied nonchalantly.

She turned to face him. "Why? It is I who is in your debt, Vincent Valentine."

He shook his head slightly. "No. If it weren't for me, none of this would have happened."

"Yeah, none of this would happen if it weren't for you…" She paused, seeing his astonishment. Then, she continued, "…because if it weren't for you, Gaia would have been obliterated and I, I would still be stuck in Jersey, jobless, and probably homeless as well."

"I've put everyone in danger, and I've forced upon you, hardships which you never had to face."

"Hardships?! The last two years were the best years of my life!" She half-shouted. In a quieter tone, added, "Still, it's nice to have someone watching your back. So, thank you."

"…" Vincent pressed a button, bringing the target Bernice had practiced on close to them. _Just_ _two bullet holes…made by her twin-barrel gun-blade._ He noted silently. "Nice." He remarked aloud.

She shrugged, "I learnt from the best."

Vincent regarded his apprentice. _I'm so going to regret this… _"…so, what troubles you?"

"Nothing." She lied, poorly.

"Oh, and you'd disobey Cloud for 'nothing'?" He crossed his arms.

_Guess they'll be no getting out of this one, Bernice Talwin._ She mentally slapped herself. "It's just…" She started while her mentor continued to eye her. "…well, I'm confused."

"About ?"

"…about what I'm doing—killing and all. It kinda goes against moral values, doesn't it? Yet what we're doing is good. And they're a whole score of other things, some we do and some we don't, where the line between good and evil becomes vague. Thinking about it makes me feel frustrated and confused, yet not, at the same time—it drives me nuts. Not thinking about it makes me feel worse." She explained.

"We do what we must to keep ourselves and the ones we care about alive...remember the simulation?" He sighed. "Besides, if you're seeking moral counsel, you're barking up the wrong tree."

She quirked her brow and waited.

_God, she is good. I thought I was the only one who could pull 'the silent approach' off._ He took in a deep breath, then said, "I used to do this sort of thing for a living."

"What do you mean by 'this sort of thing'?"

He put on a pained expression. "I was a Turk—a spy, an assassin and more."

The young woman crossed her own arms and said, "Then, it appears that I have stumbled upon the right 'tree' after all."

"…"

"This was once a mere 'job' for you. Where what you did was merely your responsibility to your employer and not a matter of life and death."

"But it was. Failure to finish an assignment resulted in one's own termination, and perhaps even the termination of one's entire family." He defended.

"Man, that's harsh." She muttered. She shook it away and said in an exasperated manner, "…born of your own choosing and not out of a life/death or 'end of the world' necessity."

He continued to stare at her, his face betraying no emotions whatsoever. It was his way of saying 'please continue'.

"What I mean is, killing like many things, whether for what one thinks is good or bad, one way or another doesn't change what it is: taking the life of another. Besides, your perception of right and wrong were not marred by the abstract idea of 'the greater good'. So, how did you cope with what you did…in the beginning, at least?"

He sighed and massaged his temple. _This was going to be a LONG night._ "First you should understand that my perception of values is rather vague. I suppose that comes with growing up in a harsh environment. Anyway, you do know what values _really_ are, right?"

After a few moments of careful thought, she said, "The essence of value: values are norms. Things that which most people have been thinking are good and right since who-knows-when. And through the ages, these principles have fused into our subconscious, so they become a reference of good or bad to whatever choices we make or actions we do."

He nodded in approval. "Couldn't have said it better myself. I don't know if you can understand, but most times, I find myself hovering between 'feeling' and 'not feeling'. I'm frustrated because it makes me feel as if I'm only half-alive. Yet…I can never be fully frustrated because part of me simply 'does not feel'. The conflict goes on day-in, day-out and I don't know what to do about it."

He awaited her reaction. With any luck, she'd either be so confused that she would just drop the whole issue, or she'd realize that he was different somehow and therefore unfit to help her.

Meanwhile, she considered his statement and made a connection. She brightened and said, "That's exactly how I feel!" It felt great to have someone who she could relate to, for she had feared that no one could understand her predicament, even though her mentor didn't seem to know the solution anymore than she did. She even thought herself silly for dwelling on such a seemingly pointless inner-conflict. Still, she had never been able to stop herself from thinking about the things she thought about. Plus, it could benefit them both if they thought and talked about it together. Just then, her heart sank. _Vincent isn't exactly the open type. There's no way he would wanna discuss something this sensitive. I might have to figure this out on my own after all._

_Looks like luck isn't on my side tonight._ He thought miserably. He didn't feel comfortable sharing his inner thoughts and feelings with anyone. Still, he had become her de facto mentor. And if the girl needed help and felt that he was the only one who could offer that guidance, then he was obliged to at least try. After all, the last thing they needed now was for her to turn into another...him. And since the issue had literally laid itself on the table, it was best to get it over with…fast. _That confrontation with Genesis may have hurt her more than we had initially realized.__ No, she would need to be in top form from now on. She must not have any distractions, mental or physical._ He sighed and took a seat on the stool beside the table, noting with some amusement, the startled look on her face. If he was going to have to sit through this discussion, he would at least make himself comfortable.

* * *

Their 'talk' lasted well into the night, during which they exchanged stories, theories, ideas and the like. It was only after her fifth or sixth hastily-stifled yawn that Vincent suggested that they should call it a night. She had agreed to go to bed only after he promised her that he would offer whatever counsel he could when she needed it and if circumstances permitted it. 

As she holstered her gun-blade and made ready to leave, he said, "This doesn't change anything. There would still be many hardships ahead that you'd have to face in the near future."

"I know. But Spirit and I can handle'em." She responded sleepily.

Vincent raised an eyebrow. "…you named that gun-blade?"

"Yeah…" she said amidst a yawn. "…Cloud has the Tsurugi, Yuffie has her Shuriken, you have Cerberus, and so I have Spirit."

The name was, to say the least, common-place and childish…_And yet, it was…_ "Perfect." He uttered.

She smiled and turned to leave.

"Just one more thing. What we talk about is between you and me, understood?"

"Of course." She answered. And with that, she was gone.

* * *

_Author's note:_

_Sadly, we have reached the end of the story. I've decided that if I was going to write about the ultimate demise of Deepground and Genesis, it would require more planning as well as more extensive illustration—both of which can be written better if it were a sequel and not the continuation of a seemingly exhausted storyline._

_Of course, how fast the sequel comes out and whether it comes out at all would depend on how many reviews I get.(hint, hint) I assure you, no review would be ignored._

_To mystory: Thank you sooo much for the compliment! Your review has inspired me to work harder in planning my stories and bettering my writing techniques as well as drive me to write more._

_To DragonessWarrior: Thank you for your compliment as well as adding me to your list. I truly am flattered! As for the pairings, well, I'm sad to say that I'm not big on intimacy, so it's a territory I prefer to avoid. Plus, romances, when not written properly can easily degrade a character (and I, being a die-hard fan) would never want that to occur. So, no real pairings. The sibling-like relationship between Denzel and Marlene in chapter 14 and mentor-friend relationship between Vince and Bernice in this chapter are about as close as it gets to any official pairings. For now, at least. But I will definitely consider this when I gain more experience in writing!_

_To all my readers, thanks for sticking it out with me for so long. I hope you've enjoyed reading this project as much as I have enjoyed writing it. I will check for reviews everyday._

_And now, (Clears throat) **THE END.**_

_Val. _


End file.
